PRACTICAL 
Automobile  Hand  Book 


FOR 


Owners,  Operators  and  Mechanicians 


BY 

CHARLES  V.  MILWARD 

Mechanical  Engineer  ' 


PRICE,  $1.00 


HATHAWAY  &  BROS.,  Publishers 

PHILADELPHIA 


PRACTICAL 
Automobile  Hand  Book 


FOR 


Owners,  Operators  and  Mechanicians 

With  over  Four   Hundred  Questions  and  Answers 
Fully  Illustrated   with   Sharp,   Clear  Line   Drawings 


BY 

CHARLES.  V.  MILWARD 

Mechanical  Engineer 


For  the  Owner,  Operator,  Mechanician  and  others  who  are  interested  in  the 
care  and  operation  of  Gasoline  and  Electric  Automobiles.  A  simple  and 
non-technical  treatise,  giving  full  detailed  instructions  on  repairing,  operating, 
caring  for,  adjusting,  high  and  low  tension,  ignition,  wiring,  timing,  valve- 
setting,  magneto,  carburetor,  the  secondary  distributer,  storage  battery,  trans- 
mission, differential,  tires,  engine  troubles,  two-cycle  and  four-cycle  motors, 
the  Knight  sliding  sleeve  valve  motor,  why  the  motor  stops,  the  electric  vehicle, 
practical  information,  etc.,  etc.  With  up-to-date  and  most  approved  answers 
to  all  questions  liable  to  be  asked  by  a  board  of  examiners  for  the  purpose 
of  examining  the  applicant  for  a  chauffeur's  license. _  • 


COPYRIQHT, 


HATHAWAY  &  BROS.,  Publishers 

PHILADELPHIA 


It      \m 


FOREWORD 


In  preparing  the  PRACTICAL  AUTOMOBILE  HAND- 
BOOK it  has  been  the  endeavor  to  produce  a  book 
that  would  meet  the  requirements  of  the  owner, 
chauffeur  and  mechanician,  and  be  easily  understood 
by  the  average  reader.  The  writer,  being  the  author 
of  the  "Chauffeur's  Blue  Book,"  which  proved  to  be 
such  a  success,  that  he  has  combined  the  writings  of 
that  book  with  this  one,  thereby  making  it  the  most 
thorough  and  practical  work  of  its  kind  ever  pub- 
lished. The  text  matter  has  been  prepared  from 
the  amateur's  standpoint,  making  it  a  most  simple 
and  practical  treatise.  All  technical  words  and  dif- 
ficult mechanical  problems  have  been  avoided.  Much 
thought  and  care  have  been  exercised  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  this  work.  Some  of  the  best  authorities  on 
automobiles  in  the  country  have  been  consulted. 
The  author  wishes  to  particularly  acknowledge  the 
courtesy  of  Motor  Car  for  the  reproduction  of  the 
drawings  and  descriptive  matter  furnished  by  them. 
There  is  a  big  difference  in  books,  just  as  in  other 
things.  There  are  several  descriptive  books  on  au- 
tomobiles at  present  on  the  market,  but,  while  their 
information  is  of  great  value,  the  text  is  usually 
treated  too  technically  to  be  of  interest  to  the  aver- 

259722 


Kr.actical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


age  reader.  With  this  point  in  mind,  and  also 
with  a  view  to  explaining  the  mechanism  of  an  au- 
tomobile and  its  troubles  intelligently  and  interest- 
ingly, the  writer  has  prepared  the  PRACTICAL 
AUTOMOBILE  HANDBOOK,  setting  forth  the  various 
points  in  detail.  The  questions  and  answers  con- 
tained in  this  book  are  in  no  sense  theoretical  or 
imaginary.  Every  one  of  them  is  practical,  and 
every  point  is  clearly  indicated,  and  the  operator  is 
wonderfully  helped  in  successfully  passing  any  ex- 
amination, should  he  be  called  upon  so  to  do. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


QUESTIONS  AND  ANSWERS 


Q.  What  is  the  motive  power  of  an  automobile? 

A.  The  motive  power  of  an  automobile  is  a  gaso- 
line engine,  which  power  comes  from  the  explosion  of 
compressed  gas  in  the  cylinders  of  the  engine,  which 
transmits  the  power  derived  from  the  explosion  to 
the  piston  through  the  connecting  rod  to  the  crank 
shaft,  then  to  the  rear  or  driving  wheels. 

Q.  In  a  four-cylinder  engine  do  all  the  cylinders 
explode  at  one  time? 

A.  No ;  the  cylinders  are  alike  and  explode  one  at 
a  time  in  rapid  succession. 

Q.  What  causes  this   explosion? 

A.  The  explosion  is  caused  by  the  compressed  gas 
being  ignited  by  an  electric  spark  made  in  the  com- 
bustion chamber  of  the  cylinder. 

Q.  What  causes  this  electric  spark? 

A.  The  electric  spark  is  created  either  by  a  mag- 
neto or  a  battery  attached  to  a  spark  coil. 

Q.  How  is  the  electric  spark  carried  to  the  cyl- 
inders ? 

A.  By  wires  with  one  end  attached  to  the  mag- 
neto, or  spark  coil,  and  the  other  end  attached  to 
a  spark  plug  which  is  screwed  in  the  head  of  the 
cylinder. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  carburetor? 

A.  It  is  a  device  for  transforming  gasoline  into 
a  vapor,  by  passing  air  either  through  or  over  a 
body  of  gasoline,  and  carrying  off  a  part  of  the  gas- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  7 

oline  in  the  form  of  vapor  with  the  air.  See  Figs. 
15  and  16. 

Q.  Where  do  the  burnt  gases  go  after  each  ex- 
plosion ? 

A.  They  pass  out  the  exhaust  valve  through  the 
exhaust  pipe,  into  the  muffler  to  the  atmosphere. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  throttle  lever? 

A.  To  control  the  supply  of  gas  taken  into  the 
cylinders.  See  Fig.  16. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  spark  lever? 

A.  It  controls  the  time  of  explosion  to  give  a  late 
or  early  explosion,  as  may  be  desired.  See  Fig.  16. 

Q.  Are  gasoline  engines  single  or  double  acting? 

A.  Single  acting,  using  one  end  of  the  piston  only. 
See  Fig.  12. 

Q.  What  are  the  cycles  of  operation  in  a  four- 
cycle engine? 

A.  (1)  Intake.  (2)  Compression.  (3)  Explo- 
sion, (i)  Exhaust. 

Q.  Describe  the  cycle  of  operation  in  a  four-cycle 
gasoline  engine. 

A.  The  first  or  downward  stroke  of  the  piston,  a 
charge  of  gasoline  vapor  and  air,  is  drawn  into  the 
cylinders,  through  the  intake  valve;  when  the  piston 
is  on  its  upward  stroke  the  intake  valve  is  closed, 
which  prevents  the  gas  from  escaping.  Therefore, 
the  cylinder  being  air-tight,  and  as  the  piston  rises 
to  the  top  of  the  cylinder  it  compresses  the  gas,  and 
just  before  the  piston  starts  on  its  downward  stroke 
an  electric  spark  takes  place  within  the  cylinder,  ig- 
niting the  charge,  causing  an  explosion,  which  drives 
the  piston  down  on  its  working  stroke.  When  the 
piston  starts  on  its  upward  stroke  the  exhaust  valve 
opens,  allowing  the  burnt  gases  to  pass  out.  When 
the  piston  reaches  the  top  of  its  exhaust  stroke  the 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  9 

exhaust  valve  closes  and  the  intake  valve  opens.  The 
cylinder  is  now  ready  for  a  fresh  charge  of  gas, 
which  is  drawn  in  on  the  next  downward  stroke  of 
the  piston,  and  the  same  series  of  operations  are  re- 
peated. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  flywheel  on  an  engine? 

A.  Its  use  is  to  make  the  speed  of  the  revolution 
more  even,  allowing  the  crankshaft  to  turn  more 
steadily,  while  the  unevenness  of  motion  comes  on  the 
piston ;  its  use  is  also  to  overcome  the  dead  center 
point. 

Q.  What  is  a  spark  plug?  What  does  it  consist 
of?  Of  what  use  is  it  on  a  gasoline  engine? 

A.  The  spark  plug  is  a  device  used  on  gasoline 
engines  to  ignite  the  charge  after  it  has  been  com- 
pressed in  the  cylinders.  The  spark  plug  consists 
of  two  terminal  electrodes  which  are  separated  from 
each  other  at  the  lower  extremity  by  an  air  gap,  and 
at  the  other  portions  by  means  of  suitable  insulating 
material.  The  gap  between  the  points  should  not 
be  over  1/32  of  an  inch,  so  that  the  resistance  of 
the  gap  will  not  be  so  high  that  the  current  cannot 
jump  between  them  when  the  gases  are  compressed. 
See  Fig.  18. 

Q.  Define  the  word  cycle  as  applied  to  gasoline 
engines. 

A.  It  is  the  four  stages  the  conditions  of  the  cyl- 
inder must  pass  through  to  develop  one  power 
stroke. 

Q.  What  two  types  of  combustion  motors  are 
mostly  used? 

A.  The  two-cycle  and  four-cycle. 

Q.  Name  two  methods  in  general  use  for  trans- 
mitting the  power  of  the  engine  to  the  driving 
wheels. 


10 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  11 

A.  The  chain  drive  and  the  shaft  drive. 
Q.  What  advantages  have  the  muti-cylinder  en- 
gines ? 

A.  Minimum    vibration,    flexibility    of    operation, 
they  develop  more  power. 

Q.  What  type  engine  combines  these  advantages? 
A.  The  six-cylinder  type. 

Q.  Name  three   types   of  clutches  that   are  used 
ordinarily  on  automobiles. 

A.  The  Disc,  Band  and  Cone. 
Q.  What  is  one  of  the  main  requirements  of  the 
combustion  chamber? 

A.  It  should  be  kept  free  from  carbon  and  soot. 
Q.  What  is  the  exploding  chamber  of  a  gasoline 
engine  ? 

A.  It  is  that  part  of  the  cylinder  where  the  gases 
are  compressed  and  exploded. 
Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  clutch? 

A.  Its  use  is  to  start  the  car  without  the  necessity 
of  stopping  the  engine. 

Q.  How  many  strokes  has  a  four-cycle  motor? 
A.  Four  strokes. 

Q.  What  is  the  duty  performed  by  each  stroke? 
A.  First  revolution:      First  stroke — 

Downward  movement  of  the  piston;  suc- 
tion charge. 
Second  stroke — 

Upward   movement    of   the   piston ;    com- 
pression of  charge. 
Second  revolution:     Third  stroke — 

Downward  movement   of  the  piston;   ex- 
plosion  of  gases. 
Fourth  stroke — 

Upward  movement  of  the  piston ;  exhaust- 
ing burnt  gases. 


12  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  At  what  point  in  the  cycle  should  the  electric 
spark  take  place? 

A.  The  electric  spark  should  take  place  just  as 
the  piston  starts  downward  on  the  explosion  or  work- 
ing stroke. 

Q.  How  many  explosions  in  a  six-cylinder  motor 
per  revolution  ? 

A.  Three. 

Q.  How  many  valves  has  a  six-cylinder  motor? 

A.  Twelve;  six  are  intake  and  six  are  exhaust. 

Q.  Does  the  explosive  mixture  enter  the  cylinders 
in  liquid  form? 

A.  No ;  it  enters  the  cylinders  in  the  form  of  gas. 

Q.  By  what  means  is  the  gasoline  transformed 
into  a  gaseous  vapor? 

A.  It  is  done  by  the  action  of  the  carburetor. 

Q.  How  does  the  gas  get  into  the  cylinder? 

A.  It  is  drawn  into  the  cylinder  by  the  vacuum 
created  by  the  piston  on  the  downward  or  suction 
stroke. 

Q.  Does  the  movement  of  the  piston  produce  suc- 
tion ? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  In  what  stroke  and  what  direction  does  the 
piston  travel  to  produce  suction? 

A.  The  intake  stroke,  while  the  piston  is  going 
downward. 

Q.  With  motor  running,  what  may  the  muffler  cut- 
out indicate  when  lield  open  ? 

A.  It  is  an  easy  way  to  indicate  whether  the  motor 
is  running  on  all  cylinders. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  muffler  cut-out? 

A.  When  the  cut-out  is  held  open  it  gives  the  en- 
gine more  power. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


13 


Q.  How  does  the  muffler 
crease  the  power  of  the  en 

A.  By  its  use  the  exha 
without  having  to  pass 
all  chances  of  any  back 

Q.  What  is  a  water 

A.  It  is  the  part 
to  run  through  for 

Q.  What  does 

A.  It  causes  the 
piston  has   complet 


it-out,  if  held  open,  in- 
le? 

it  is  given  a  free  outlet 
iuglj  the  muffler,  reducing 
>sure. 
etj 

jr  which  allows  water 


e  spark  doi 

take  plaoej  before  the 
compressions-stroke. 

Q.  How  many  tfirottle  levers  are  there  on  a  car? 

A.  Generally  one,  although  some  cars  have  two,  a 
hand  throttle  and  a  foot  throttle.  The  foot  throttle 
is  known  as  the  accelerator. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  accelerator? 

A.  By  its  use  an  instant  increase  of  speed  can 
be  accomplished  by  pressing  the  accelerator  pedal 
with  the  foot.  This  opens  the  throttle  instantly 
without  touching  the  gas-controlling  lever,  but,  im- 
mediately upon  releasing  the  (accelerator  pedal,  the 
car  settles  back  to  the  speed  at  which  the  lever  is  set.j 

Q.  After  starting  the  moto^what  is  the  proper 
position  for  the  spark  and  tmyttle  levers? 

A.  The  spark  lever  shouldjjCe^  advanced  about  half 
way,  while  the  throttle  sjwruld  be^opejjed  just  enough 
to  keep  the  motor  rumrffigx 

Q.  The  highest  and  lowest  point  of  the  piston 
action  is  called  what? 

A.  The  center,   or   end  of  stroke. 

Q.  What  is  the  space  between  the  top  center  of  the 
piston  and  the  top  of  the  cylinder  called? 

A.  The  explosion  chamber. 

Q.  The  distance  the  piston  travels  from  center  to 
center  is  called  what? 


14  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  The  length  of  stroke. 

Q.  In  what  position  should  the  gear  lever  be  in 
starting  the  engine? 

A.  It  should  be  in  a  neutral  position. 

Q.  If  you  cannot  use  the  starting  crank,  how  can 
you  start  the  engine? 

A.  Place  the  high-speed  gear  in  and  let  the  clutch 
in  and  then  have  the  car  pushed  forward  until  the 
engine  is  turned  over  and  started. 

Q.  How  would  you  determine  the  order  of  firing 
in  the  cylinders? 

A.  By  disconnecting  the  wires  from  the  spark 
plugs  and  turning  the  engine  over  by  hand,  with  the 
switch  on,  then  watch  each  wire  as  it  sparks. 

Q.  In  a  single-cylinder  motor,  running  at  1200 
revolutions  per  minute,  how  many  contacts  per  min- 
ute will  occur  in  the  timer? 

A.   Six  hundred  per  minute. 

Q.  In  a  four-cylinder  motor  how  many  would 
occur  ? 

A.  Twenty-four  hundred  per  minute. 

Q.  In  a  six-cylinder  motor  how  many? 

A.  Thirty-six  hundred  per  minute. 

Q.  What  is  a  sprag? 

A.  It  is  a  steel  bar  with  one  end  connected  to  a 
part  of  the  frame,  and  the  rear  end  hangs  suspended 
by  a  chain  or  strong  wire,  by  which  it  may  be 
dropped  to  the  ground  to  prevent  the  car  from  run- 
ning down  hill  backward. 

Q.  When  does  a  motor  develop  more  power,  when 
it  is  warm  or  when  it  is  cold? 

A.  When  it  is  warm. 

Q.  Why  is  the  power  of  the  motor  reduced  when 
it  is  cold? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  15 

A.  Because  the  expansive  force  of  the  gases  is 
reduced. 

Q.  May  kerosene  be  used  as  a  fuel  for  combus- 
tion motors? 

A.  Yes,  to  some  extent. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  the  driving  shaft? 

A.  It  transmits  the  power  to  the  rear  wheels. 

Q.  What  is  the  connecting  rod  attached  to? 

A.  One  end  is  attached  to  the  piston;  the  other 
end  to  the  crankshaft. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  the  connecting  rod? 

A.  It  transmits  the  power  from  the  piston  to  the 
crankshaft. 

Q.  What  part  of  the  motor  is  the  force  of  the  ex- 
plosion directed  on? 

A.  The  piston. 

Q.  What  direction  does  the  piston  travel  when  the 
explosion  takes  place? 

A.  Downward. 

Q.  What  is  this  stroke  called? 

A.  The  explosion  or  working  stroke. 

Q.  What  is  the  next  stroke  called  after  the  piston 
completes  the  explosion  stroke? 

A.  The  exhaust  stroke. 

Q.  What  is  a  horsepower? 

A.  It  is  the  force  required  to  raise  33,000  pounds 
one  foot  high  in  one  minute,  although  it  is  much 
greater  than  most  horses  have  the  strength  to  per- 
form. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  piston  speed  of  1000  feet 
per  minute? 

A.  It  means  that  if  a  motor  has  a  6-inch  stroke, 
the  piston  travels  one  foot  every  revolution,  and  the 
crankshaft  would  have  to  rotate  1000  revolutions  per 
minute,  which  would  give  you  a  piston  speed  of  1000 


16  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

feet  per  minute,  or  if  the  motor  has  a  12-inch  stroke, 
the  piston  would  travel  two  feet  every  revolution  of 
the  crankshaft,  the  motor  would  have  a  piston  speed 
of  1000  feet  per  minute,  at  500  revolutions  per  min- 
ute. 

Q.  What  is  the  most  familiar  formula  used  for 
estimating  the  horsepower  of  an  automobile  motor? 

A.  The  A.  L.  A.  M.  formula. 

Q.  What  is  the  formula? 

D2N 

A.  The  formula  is  as  follows :  H.  P.  —  - 

2.5 

D  is  the  diameter  of  the  cylinder,  N  is  the  number 
of  cylinders,  and  2.5  is  a  constant. 

Q.  If  a  gasoline  engine  refuses  to  start,  state  the 
probable  causes. 

A.  (1)  No  gasoline;  tank  empty  or  supply  pipe 
shut  off.  (2)  Switch  plug  not  in  position.  (3) 
Fouled  spark  plugs.  (4)  Improper  mixture.  (5) 
Improper  ignition.  (6)  Valves  may  be  stuck.  (7) 
Poor  compression.  (8)  Water-jacket  leak,  letting 
water  in  the  cylinder.  (9)  Spark  coil  not  adjusted 
properly.  (10)  Spark  plugs  broken. 

Q.  What  causes  an  engine  to  miss  fire? 

A.  (1)  Insulation  wires  broken.  (2)  Carburetor 
not  adjusted  properly.  (3)  A  loose  wire.  (4) 
Contact  on  timer  may  need  cleaning.  (5)  Spark 
coil  may  need  adjusting.  (6)  Gasoline  feed  pipe 
may  be  choked.  (7)  Water  in  the  gasoline.  (8) 
Fouled  or  broken  spark  plug.  (9)  Spark  plugs  or 
valves  may  be  loose. 

Q.  What  is  the  cause  of  a  hissing  sound  on  a  gas- 
oline engine? 

A.  Exhaust  pipe  may  be  loose  or  cracked,  relief 
tap  open,  spark  plug  loose  or  broken. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  17 

Q.  What  is  the  cause  of  an  engine  firing  regularly, 
but  very  weak? 

A.  (1)  Carburetor  not  adjusted  properly.  (2) 
Vibrator  on  coil  may  need  adjusting  or  cleaning. 

(3)  Inlet  valve  springs  too  weak.      (4)  Muffler  may 
be  choked  with  carbon.      (5)  Poor  compression  valves 
may  leak.      (6)  Poor  lubrication. 

Q.  If  the  engine  runs  regularly  and  car  seems  to 
drag,  what  is  the  cause? 

A.  (1)  Brakes  may  not  be  released.  (2)  Clutch 
may  be  slipping.  (3)  Springs  on  clutch  may  be 
weak.  (4)  Insufficient  lubrication.  (5)  Cones  on 
the  wheels  may  be  tight.  (6)  Oil  on  clutch  surface. 

Q.  What  would  cause  an  engine  to  stop  suddenly? 

A.  (1)  Gasoline  tank  empty  or  air-bound.  (2) 
Gasoline  supply  pipe  choked.  (3)  Spark  plug 
broken.  (4)  Electric  circuit  disconnected.  (5) 
Loose  or  broken  wires. 

Q.  What  causes  an  engine  to  knock? 

A.  (1)  Spark  may  be  too  far  advanced.  (2)  Mix- 
ture may  be  too  rich.  (3)  Pre-ignition,  due  to  over- 
heated engine.  (4)  Bearings  may  be  loose.  (5) 
Cylinder  on  crank  case  may  be  loose.  (6)  Fly- 
wheel may  be  loose  on  shaft. 

Q.  What  causes  an  engine  to  get  overheated? 

A.  (1)  Using  low  gear  too  much.  (2)  Driving 
with  spark  too  far  retarded.  (3)  Muffler  choked. 

(4)  Water  pump  not  working.      (5)  Radiator  tubes 
or  water  jacket  stopped  up.      (6)  Not  enough  water 
in  radiator.      (7)  Fan  not  working  properly. 

Q.  What  causes  back-firing  in  carburetor? 

A.  (1)  Weak  inlet  valve  spring,  not  letting  valve 
close  properly.  (2)  Inlet  valve  leaks;  needs  grind- 
ing. (3)  Weak  gasoline  mixture.  (4)  Spark  too 


18  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

far   retarded.      (5)    Valves   may  not  be  timed  cor- 
rectly. 

Q.  What  is  the  cause  of  a  smoky  exhaust? 

A.  If  it  is  a  heavy  black  smoke  it  is  due  to  too 
much  gasoline  being  fed  by  the  carburetor;  but  if  the 
smoke  is  blue  it  shows  there  is  being  too  much  oil  fed 
to  the  engine. 

Q.  What  causes  carbon  deposits  to  form  in  the 
cylinder? 

A.  The  chief  cause  is  the  overfeeding  of  oil.  The 
following  will  also  cause  carbon  to  form  in  the  cyl- 
inders :  A  choked  muffler,  causing  back  pressure ;  too 
rich  a  mixture,  causing  incomplete  combustion,  or  too 
defective  ignition. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  a  short  circuit? 

A.  A  bypass  of  comparatively  small  resistance 
around  any  portion  of  a  circuit,  by  which  so  much  of 
the  circuit  passes  as  virtually  to  cut  out  any  circuit 
connected  therewith,  and  so  prevent  it  from  receiving 
an  appreciable  current. 

Q.  Why  is  a  muffler  used  on  a  gasoline  engine? 

A.  To  deaden  the  noise  of  the  exhaust  gases. 

Q.  Why  is  it  necessary  to  keep  the  muffler  free 
from  carbon  deposits  and  soot? 

A.  If  the  muffler  is  not  kept  clean  it  will  tend  to 
increase  back  pressure,  causing  lack  of  power. 

Q.  What  causes  a  muffler  shot? 

A.  (1)  Exhaust  valve  partly  opened.  (2)  Cyl- 
inder missing  fire  and  unburnt  gases  pass  into  the 
muffler,  which  are  ignited  from  the  next  exhausted 
charge.  (3)  Too  late  a  spark.  (4)  Weak  bat- 
teries. (5)  Muffler  full  of  carbon  and  soot.  (6) 
Faulty  construction  of  muffler. 

I       Q.  What  causes  an  engine  to  kick  backward  when 
I  cranking? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  19 

A.  (1)  An  overheated  cylinder.  (2)  Having  the 
spark  lever  too  far  advanced.  (3)  Carbon  deposits 
in  combustion  chamber  become  incandescent,  causingj 
premature  ignition. 

Q.  What  effect  has  cold  on  gasoline? 

A.  The  gasoline  does  not  vaporize  so  readily  in 
cold  weather  and  should  be  supplied  with  extra  heat. 

Q.  If  an  engine  gets  overheated  should  cold  water 
be  poured  over  the  outside  of  the  cylinders  to  cool 
them  ? 

A.  No ;  to  pour  cold  water  over  the  cylinders  while 
in  such  condition  would  be  apt  to  crack  them. 

Q.  What  are  the  symptoms  of  an  overheated  en- 
gine ? 

A.  The  engine  will  begin  to  pound  and  knock, 
while  the  water  in  the  radiator  will  steam. 

Q.  What  is  liable  to  result  from  an  overheated 
engine? 

A.  Lubricating  oil  burnt  up;  the  pistons  expand- 
ing from  the  heat  and  binding  to  the  cylinders  and 
the  connecting  rod  bearings  to  the  crankshaft;  pos- 
sibly a  broken  crankshaft. 

Q.  What  should  be  done  when  the  engine  gets  over- 
heated ? 

A.  It  should  be  stopped  at  once  and  allowed  to 
cool,  while  the  engine  is  turned  over  occasionally  by 
hand  to  keep  the  pistons  and  bearings  from  binding. 

Q.  What  is  the  cause  of  poor  compression? 

A.  Poor  compression  is  caused  by  (1)  leaky  valves. 
(&)  Spark  plug  loose.  (3)  Piston  rings  stuck  or 
broken.  (4)  Insufficient  lubrication.  (5)  Valve  cap 
loose.  (6)  Cracked  piston.  (7)  Scored  or  cracked 
cylinder.  (8)  Weak  valve  springs.  (9)  Valves 
may  not  be  timed  correctly. 


20  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  If  an  engine  has  poor  compression  does  it  af- 
fect its  power? 

A.  Yes ;  to  a  very  great  extent. 

Q.  How  can  you  tell  if  an  engine  has  poor  com- 
pression ? 

A.  By  turning  the  engine  over  by  hand  and  notice 
if  it  takes  the  same  pressure  to  pull  over  each  com- 
pression stroke. 

Q.  What  is  a  remedy  for  a  clutch  that  takes  hold 
too  quickly? 

A.  A  few  drops  of  neat's-foot  oil  put  on  the  clutch 
surface. 

Q.  If  a  clutch  slips  what  should  be  done? 

A.  By  washing  the  clutch  surface  with  gasoline  it 
will  sometimes  be  relieved,  or  the  clutch  spring  may 
need  tightening. 

Q.  How  can  a  sticky  valve  in  the  engine  be  rem- 
edied ? 

A.  By  soaking  it  with  kerosene. 

Q.  What  causes  choking  of  the  air  intake? 

A.  Valve  not  properly  adjusted,  valve  spring  too 
weak,  or  engine  may  be  cold. 

Q.  If  your  clutch  would  not  disengage  while  run- 
ning the  car  what  would  you  do? 

A.  I  would  put  on  the  brakes  and  throw  off  the 
switch. 

Q.  If  motor  keeps  running  after  throwing  off  the 
switch  what  is  the  cause? 

A.  The  most  common  cause  is  pre-ignition,  due  to 
overheating  of  motor;  short  circuit  or  switch  not 
working  properly. 

Q.  How  can  carbon  be  removed  from  the  combus- 
tion chamber  without  taking  off  the  cylinders? 

A.  By  soaking  the  carbon  with  kerosense  or  one 
of  the  good  preparations  on  the  market  made  for 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  21 

that  purpose,  and  allowing  to  stand  for  some  time. 
Removing  the  valve  caps  and  spark  plugs,  a  scraper 
could  be  inserted  through  the  openings  and  the  car- 
bon pushed  out. 

Q.  How  can  carbon  be  removed  from  under  the 
piston  rings? 

A.  The  only  way  this  can  be  properly  done  is  by 
removing  the  pistons  from  the  cylinders  and  the 
rings  taken  off  the  piston  and  thoroughly  scraped. 

Q.  Define  the  word  pre-ignition. 

A.  Self-firing;  the  motor  continues  to  run  after 
the  current  is  shut  off. 

Q.  What  is  the  cause  of  self-firing? 

A.  Overheated  motor,  probably  due  to  insufficient 
lubrication ;  circulating  pump  not  working,  lack  of 
water  in  radiator,  carbon  deposits  in  combustion 
chamber,  using  low  gear  too  much,  driving  with 
spark  too  far  retarded,  muffler  choked,  radiator  tubes 
or  water  jackets  stopped  up,  fan  not  working  prop- 
erly, carburetor  not  properly  adjusted. 

Q.  What  is  a  commutator? 

A.  It  is  a  device  for  changing  the  direction  of  elec- 
tric currents. 

Q.  What  is  a  volt  meter? 

A.  It  is  an  instrument  for  measuring  the  electrical 
motive  force  or  difference  of  potentials  between  any 
two  points  in  a  circuit. 

Q.  What  is  an  ammeter? 

A.  It  is  an  instrument  for  measuring  the  quan- 
tity of  electricity  flowing  in  a  circuit. 

Q.  What  is  an  ampere? 

A.  The  practical  unit  of  electric  current,  the  cur- 
rent being  the  rate  of  flow. 

Q.  What  is  a  volt? 

A.  A  volt  is  the  unit  of  electric  motive  force. 


22  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  What  is  a  hydrometer? 

A.  An  instrument  for  determining  the  specific 
gravities  of  liquids. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  specific  gravity? 

A.  The  ratio  of  weight  of  a  body  to  the  weight 
of  an  equal  volume  of  some  other  body  taken  as  a 
standard  or  unit.  A  standard  for  solids  or  liquids 
is  usually  water. 

Q.  What  is  a  magneto? 

A.  A  magneto  is  an  electric  device  used  to  supply 
electricity  for  ignition  on  a  gasoline  engine. 

Q.  Is  the  current  generated  by  the  magneto 
direct  or  alternating? 

A.  Alternating  current,  reversing  its  direction  of 
flow  rapidly. 

Q.  By  what  means  is  it  changed  to  a  direct  cur- 
rent? 

A.  By  the  use  of  a  commutator. 

Q.  Where  is  the  commutator  located  on  the  mag- 
neto ? 

A.  It  is  located  on  the  armature  shaft. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  direct  current? 

A.  An  electric  current  constant  in  direction  as 
distinguished  from  an  alternating  current. 

Q.  What  is  alternating  current? 

A.  An  electric  current  that  alternately  flows  in 
opposite  directions. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  distributer? 

A.  By  its  use  any  number  of  cylinders  may  be  ig- 
nited from  a  single  coil. 

Q.  What  is  the  difference  between  the  high-  and 
low-tension  magnetos? 

A.  The  low-tension  magneto  consists  of  a  number 
of  permanent  horseshoe  magnets  and  an  armature  ro- 
tating between  their  poles,  and  as  the  armature  cuts 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  23 

the  "lines  of  force"  of  the  magnets  an  electrical  cur- 
rent is  set  up  in  its  coils  and  is  collected  by  a  suit- 
able brush.  The  magneto  consisting  of  a  contact- 
maker  and  an  induction  coil  or  a  contact-maker,  sin- 
gle coil  and  a  high-tension  distributer  using  regular 
spark  plugs  with  the  contact-maker  and  distributer 
mounted  on  the  magneto,  is  then  generally  called  a 
high-tension  magneto.  The  name  applied,  however, 
is  electrically  incorrect,  as  the  magneto  really  gen- 
erates only  a  low-tension  current,  which  is  then  trans- 
formed by  a  single  coil.  A  regular  high-tension 
magneto  has  a  second  winding  on  its  armature  which 
takes  the  place  of  a  coil,  so  that  the  current,  when  it 
is  collected  for  distribution,  is  already  at  a  high  ten- 
sion. 

Q.  In  connection  with  what  system  of  ignition  is 
the  low-tension  magneto  generally  used? 

A.  The  make-and-break  system. 

Q.  What  system  of  ignition  generally  uses  the 
high-tension  magneto? 

A.  The  jump-spark  system. 

Q.  What  two  ignition  systems  are  considered  the 
most  practical? 

A.  The  high-  and  low-tension  systems. 

Q.  What  other  names  are  these  two  systems  known 
by? 

A.  The  high-tension  is  known  as  the  jump-spark 
system,  while  the  low-tension  is  called  the  make-and- 
brake  system. 

Q.  What  is  known  as  the  dual  system  of  ignition? 

A.  The  dual  ignition  employs  both  magneto  and 
battery  with  one  set  of  spark  plugs. 

Q.  What  is  the  end  of  a  wire  in  a  circuit  called  ? 

A.  A  terminal. 


24  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  What  is  a  switch? 

A.  It  is  a  device  for  throwing  on  and  off  the  elec- 
tric current  when  so  desired. 

Q.  How  many  positions  has  a  switch? 

A.  Generally  three — magneto,  battery  and  off  po- 
sitions. 

Q.  How  may  a  broken  trembler  blade  on  the  coil 
be  temporarily  repaired? 

A.  By  making  a  blade  from  a  piece  of  corset  steel 
or  clock  spring. 

Q.  By  what  method  can  the  fuel  efficiency  be  in- 
creased ? 

A.  By  a  proper  handling  of  the  car  and  a  cor- 
rect adjustment  of  the  carburetor. 

Q.  How  would  you  extinguish  a  fire  in  the  car- 
buretor? 

A.  By  throwing  sand  or  earth  on  it,  or  smother  it. 

Q.  What  is  the  result  that  all  carburetors  and 
vaporizers  attempt  to  secure? 

A.  They  attempt  to  mix  the  right  proportions  of 
gas  and  air  before  it  is  drawn  into  the  cylinders  for 
combustion. 

Q.  What  is  the  needle  valve? 

A.  It  is  that  part  of  the  carburetor  that  controls 
the  supply  of  gasoline. 

Q.  What  is  the  effect  of  turning  the  needle  valve 
in  or  out? 

A.  By  turning  the  valve  in  it  reduces  the  flow 
of  gasoline,  while  turning  it  out  allows  more  gasoline 
to  flow  into  the  carburetor. 

Q.  What  is  the  correct  position  of  the  needle 
valve  ? 

A.  The  correct  position  is  when  the  engine  de- 
velops the  most  power  and  speed  with  the  least  con- 
sumption of  gasoline. 


Practical  Automobile  Rand-Book  25 

Q.  What  use  is  the  auxiliary  air  valve? 

A.  At  high  speed  the  motor  requires  a  greater  pro- 
portion of  air  than  when  running  at  low  speed,  and 
for  this  reason  an  auxiliary  air  inlet  is  provided. 

Q.  What  is  known  as  the  flusher  or  tickler? 

A.  It  is  that  part  of  the  carburetor  used  on  some 
cars  to  cause  the  gasoline  to  flow  for  starting  pur- 
poses. 

Q.  On  what  part  of  the  car  does  the  throttle  act? 

A.  On  the  carburetor. 

Q.  State  how  shutting  off  the  air  supply  can  have 
the  effect  of  producing  an  explosive  suitable  for 
starting  a  cold  engine. 

A.  By  shutting  off  the  air  nothing  but  gasoline  is 
drawn  into  the  cylinders,  which  will  help  consider- 
ably to  start  a  cold  engine,  but  the  air  should  be 
turned  on  again  after  the  engine  is  started. 

Q.  What  is  the  spray  nozzle? 

A.  It  is  that  part  of  the  carburetor  that  the  gas- 
oline passes  through  to  the  mixing  chamber  in  the 
form  of  a  spray. 

Q.  Does  the  spray  nozzle  ever  give  trouble? 

A.  Yes;  dirt  is  very  often  liable  to  get  into  the 
nozzle  and  stop  the  supply  of  gasoline. 

Q.  What  would  you  do  if  the  spray  nozzle  got  dirt 
into  it? 

A.  In  some  cars  it  would  be  necessary  to  take  the 
nozzle  out,  but  in  others  the  carburetor  can  be 
'drained  by  unscrewing  a  cap  from  the  bottom. 

Q.  What  is  the  mixing  chamber? 

A.  It  is  that  part  of  the  carburetor  that  the  gas- 
oline spray  and  air  meet  to  be  mixed  and  formed  into 
a  gaseous  vapor. 

Q.  Will  the  throttle  affect  the  quality  of  the  mix- 
ture? 


26  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  No;  it  does  not  affect  the  quality.  It  affects 
the  quantity. 

Q.  Why  is  a  filter  used  on  some  cars  in  the  pipe 
leading  from  the  gasoline  tank? 

A.  For  the  purpose  of  straining  out  any  dirt  that 
may  be  in  the  gasoline. 

Q.  What  trouble  will  follow  from  using  too  rich 
a  mixture? 

A.  The  combustion  chamber  will  become  carbon- 
ized, fouling  of  the  spark  plugs  and  heating  of  the 
engine,  causing  loss  of  power. 

Q.  Why  is  it  necessary  to  supply  extra  heat  to  the 
carburetor  in  cold  weather? 

A.  Because  gasoline  does  not  vaporize  so  readily 
in  cold  weather.  It  is  generally  heated  by  allowing 
hot  water  to  run  around  the  carburetor  through  a 
water  jacket. 

Q.  If  the  motor  refuses  to  start  on  account  of  it 
being  too  cold  how  may  the  carburetor  be  heated  to 
induce  starting? 

A.  By  pouring  hot  water  or  by  placing  hot  cloths 
around  the  carburetor,  being  careful  not  to  allow  any 
of  the  water  to  get  into  the  gasoline. 

Q.  What  is  the  difference  between  the  selective 
and  the  progressive  types  of  transmission? 

A.  The  difference  is  mainly  in  the  method  of 
operating  the  speed  changes.  In  the  selective  trans- 
mission the  speed  desired  may  be  selected  and 
changed  to  it  at  once  without  passing  through  any 
other  speed.  With  the  progressive  style  the  con- 
tinuous or  progressive  movement  of  the  gear-shifting 
lever  gives  in  succession  the  speed  from  the  lowest 
to  the  highest.  If  the  car  had  four  speeds  and  the 
low  gear  was  in,  and  the  highest  was  desired,  it 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  27 

would  be  necessary  to  pass  from  low  to  second,  to 
third,  then  into  the  high  gear. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  transmission? 

A.  It  is  that  portion  of  an  automobile's  mechan- 
ism which  transmits  the  power  of  the  motor  to  the 
rear  or  driving  wheels. 

Q.  What  is  the  nature  of  this  mechanism? 

A.  It  is  a  combination  of  parts  arranged  in  suclj 
a  way  that  by  means  of  a  suitable  lever  different  gear 
ratios  or  speed  ratios  may  be  obtained. 

Q.  Why  is  this  necessary? 

A.  Because  the  construction  of  a  gasoline  engine 
is  such  that  its  power  depends  largely  on  its  speed, 
and,  therefore,  for  heavy  duty  the  ratio  of  gearing 
to  the  driving  wheels  must  be  raised,  thus  increasing 
the  power. 

Q.  How  is  such  a  transmission  constructed  or  ar- 
ranged ? 

A.  There  are  several  different  kinds  of  transmis- 
sion, the  most  common  kind  being  known  as  the 
sliding  gear  transmission.  In  this  device  rows  of 
gears  are  arranged  on  parallel  shafts,  and  speed 
changes  are  made  by  sliding  different  gears  into 
mesh  with  one  another  while  turning  at  high  speed. 

Q.  Is  not  this  operation  destructive  to  the  gears? 

A.  Not  so  much  as  one  would  think.  Still,  there  is 
always  the  liability  of  breakage  or  stripping  the 
teeth,  especially  if  one  be  not  expert.  There  is  also 
a  certain  amount  of  wear  on  the  gear  and  much 
noise  is  sometimes  caused  by  shifting  or  changing 
speeds. 

Q.  Are  there  other  kinds  of  transmissions  ? 

A.  Yes;  there  are  individual  clutch  transmissions, 
in  which  the  gears  are  always  in  mesh  and  their 
action  controlled  by  a  system  of  clutches,  each  speed 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

\\    I 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  29 

ratio  being  operated  by  a  separate  clutch.  Of  these 
individual  clutch  transmissions  the  most  common  is 
known  as  the  planetary,  in  which  the  gears  are  ar- 
ranged in  circles,  revolving  around  a  central  geai 
like  planets  around  the  sun. 

Q.  What  attention  does  the  transmission  require? 

A.  It  is  necessary  to  grease  it  frequently,  for, 
if  allowed  to  become  dry,  the  transmission  gears  will 
soon  be  ruined. 

Q.  Are  most  modern  automobiles  similar  in  de- 
sign? 

A.  Yes ;  there  is  great  similarity  in  a  general  way 
among  most  modern  automobiles. 

Q.  What  is  the  difference  between  the  sliding  gear 
and  the  friction  types  of  transmission? 

A.  Instead  of  a  gear  box  containing  a  number  of 
toothed  gears  or  cogwheels,  the  power  is  transmitted 
by  friction,  which  is  to  say  by  a  rolling  contact  of 
one  round  disc  against  another  placed  perpendicular 
to  it. 

Q.  How  many  speeds  may  be  had  from  a  friction 
transmission? 

A.  Any  number  desired;  twenty  or  more. 

Q.  Can  this  type  of  transmission  be  used  as  a 
brake? 

A.  Yes ;  the  reverse  can  be  used  as  a  brake,  and 
is  more  efficient  and  far  quicker  in  its  action  than 
any  brake  can  possibly  be.  By  its  use  the  rear  wheels 
can  be  whirled  backward  while  the  car  is  still  run- 
ning forward. 

Q.  What  is  the  direct  drive? 

A.  When  driving  on  direct,  it  is  from  the  crank- 
shaft without  passing  through  any  intermediate 
gears. 


30  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  What  should  be  done  when  changing  from  one 
gear  to  another? 

A.  The  clutch  should  always  be  disengaged. 

Q.  What  rule  should  be  observed  before  placing 
the  reverse  gear  in  on  a  sliding  gear  transmission? 

A.  The  car  should  be  brought  to  a  full  stop  first. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  differential  gear?  And 
how  does  it  work? 

A.  It  consists  of  gears  arranged  so  as  to  equalize 
or  differentiate  the  movement  of  two  adjoining 
shafts  or  axles,  allowing  equal  driving  power  to  be 
transmitted  to  each  shaft  or  axle  while  rounding  or 
turning  corners,  as  in  an  automobile,  when  one  axle 
must  travel  faster  than  the  other.  By  this  means 
two  different  speeds  in  two  different  parts  of  the 
axle  are  provided  for. 

Q.  What  is  a  "floating"  rear  axle? 

A.  A  floating  type  rear  axle  is  a  rotating  rear 
axle  of  the  type  in  which  the  wheels  are  carried  on 
a  non-rotating  tube,  within  which  the  driving  axle 
rotates,  it  being  connected  with  the  wheels  by  jaw 
clutches,  or  similar  means  not  involving  positive  en- 
gagement. Thus  the  rotating  part  does  not  carry 
the  weight. 

Q.  What  is  known  as  a  dead  axle? 

A.  One  that  carries  weight  only. 

Q.  What  is  a  live  axle? 

A.  One  having  parts  that  turn  the  driving  wheels 
in  addition  to  carrying  the  weight. 

Q.  When  an  automobile  turns  a  corner,  do  the 
wheels  on  one  side  turn  faster  than  the  wheels  on 
the  other  side? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  On  which  side  do  the  wheels  turn  faster  in 
rounding  a  corner? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


31 


1 — Pierce  Crip  a   Bad   Method;   9 — Correct   Hold  for  Forward   Movement;   S— Finish  of  Forward 
Movement;  4 — Alternative  Grip  Suitable  for   Many  Gears;   6;— Awkward  Hold  of  Wheel: 
6 — Proper   and    Comfortable    Hold;    7 — Wrong  Foot  Position:    8 — Nervous,    Uncom- 
fortable Position:  »— Careless.  Lounging  Position ;  10— A  Correct  "Seat" 


32  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  The  wheels  on  the  outside,  or  the  ones  farthest 
from  the  curb. 

Q.  Is  it  necessary  to  supply  some  means  of  driv- 
ing the  rear  wheels  so  that  in  case  there  is  more  re- 
sistance to  the  turning  of  one  wheel  than  there  is  to 
the  turning  of  the  other? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  Describe  briefly  how  this  can  be  accomplished. 

A.  The  driving  wheels  of  an  automobile  are  ar- 
ranged so  that  they  may  turn  independently  of  each 
other.  This  is  accomplished  by  using  a  divided 
axle,  which  is  driven  by  a  number  of  gears,  known 
as  the  equalizing,  compensating  or  differential  gear. 

Q.  Where  is  the  differential  located? 

A.  It  is  located  in  the  center  of  the  rear  axle. 

Q.  How  would  you  know  if  the  differential  was 
broken? 

A.  By  the  failure  of  the  rear  wheels  to  turn  after 
the  clutch  was  let  in  turning  the  driving  shaft,  and 
not  the  rear  axle. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  way  to  pass  a  moving  ve- 
hicle going  in  the  same  direction? 

A.  I  would  give  the  proper  warning  by  sound- 
ing the  horn  and  pass  on  the  left  side  of  it. 

Q.  In  coming  to  intersecting  roads  what  would 
you  do? 

A.  I  would  slow  the  car  down  and  blow  the  horn, 
and  keep  to  the  right. 

Q.  If  you  met  another  vehicle  and  there  was  a 
doubt  as  to  the  right  of  way,  what  would  you  do? 

A.  I  would  stop  and  let  the  other  vehicle  have  it. 

Q.  After  you  had  passed  a  moving  vehicle  going 
the  same  way  would  you  turn  right  in  front  of  it 
immediately  ? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  33 

A.  No ;  I  would  run  some  distance  before  turning 
to  the  right  of  the  road  again. 

Q.  Has  an  automobile  the  right  of  way,  and  is 
a  pedestrian  supposed  to  get  out  of  your  way  when 
you  blow  the  horn? 

A.  No;  every  one  has  the  same  rights  on  the 
public  roads. 

Q.  Would  you  attempt  to  run  a  motor  car  after 
taking  a  drink  of  any  alcoholic  beverage? 

A.  No;  it  would  be  more  than  unjust  to  others; 
it  would  be  a  crime. 

Q.  How  would  you  pass  a  horse-drawn  vehicle  on 
a  narrow  road,  going  in  the  same  direction? 

A.  I  would  pass  very  slowly  on  the  left  side  of 
it,  and  if  I  saw  the  horse  was  frightened  and  the 
driver  might  lose  control  of  it  I  would  stop  my  car 
and  motor,  if  necessary,  until  such  time  as  I  saw 
that  there  would  be  no  chance  of  a  possible  serious 
accident. 

Q.  How  would  you  turn  a  corner  or  curve? 

A.  I  would  never  cut  a  corner.  I  would  slow 
down,  keep  well  to  the  right  and  blow  the  horn. 

Q.  Would  you  pass  a  moving  vehicle  going  in  the 
same  direction  around  a  corner  or  curve? 

A.  No;  I  would  wait  until  the  other  vehicle  was 
around  the  curve,  and  saw  that  the  road  was  clear 
before  trying  to  do  so. 

Q.  Would  you  try  to  pass  a  moving  vehicle  in  a 
cloud  of  dust? 

A.  No ;  I  would  wait  until  the  view  was  unob- 
structed, as  another  vehicle  may  be  coming  from 
the  opposite  direction. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  side  to  pass  a  moving  ve- 
hicle coming  from  the  opposite  direction? 

A.  Pass  on  the  right-hand  side. 


34  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  side  to  pass  a  moving  ve- 
hicle going  in  the  same  direction? 

A.  Pass  on  the  left  side  of  it. 

Q.  How  would  you  pass  a  trolley  car  that  is 
standing  still? 

A.  I  would  slow  up  and  blow  the  horn,  and  if  the 
car  was  discharging  passengers  I  would  come  to  a 
stop;  if  compelled  to  pass  on  the  left  side  of  it  I 
would  run  very  slow  and  be  ready  to  stop  in  an 
instant,  as  some  one  may  step  from  behind  the  car 
in  front  of  the  machine. 

Q.  How  would  you  drive  on  slippery  or  sandy 
roads  ? 

A.  I  would  run  slow  and  use  great  caution,  be- 
cause the  car  cannot  be  easily  controlled  when  the 
roads  are  in  such  a  condition. 

Q.  Would  you  hold  the  center  of  the  road  if  an- 
other vehicle  is  trying  to  pass  you? 

A.  No;  I  would  keep  well  to  the  right,  and  give 
them  the  same  courteous  treatment  as  I  would  ex- 
pect from  them. 

Q.  Would  you  run  away  in  case  you  were  in  an 
accident  ? 

A.  No ;  I  would  stop  and  offer  help  if  I  could ;  it 
would  be  cowardly  and  inhuman  to  run  away. 

Q.  How  would  you  leave  a  car  on  a  hill  unat- 
tended ? 

A.  I  would  put  the  brakes  on  and  turn  the  front 
wheels  to  the  curbstone,  or  put  a  block  under  them. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  way  to  make  a  right-hand 
turn  into  another  street? 

A.  I  would  turn  the  corner  as  near  the  right-hand 
curb  as  possible.  See  Fig.  27. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  way  to  make  a  left-hand 
turn  into  another  street? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  35 

A.  In  making  a  left-hand  turn  I  would  turn 
around  the  center  of  intersection  of  the  two  streets. 
See  Fig.  28. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  way  to  cross  from  one 
side  of  the  street  to  the  other? 

A.  Before  crossing  I  would  look  back  or  hold  up 
the  hand  to  warn  any  one  approaching.  Then  turn 
to  the  other  side,  with  the  right-hand  side  of  the  ma- 
chine to  the  curb.  See  Fig.  29. 


• 


Q.  In  coming  to  a  stop  or  slowing  up  what  signal 
would  you  give  those  behind? 

A.  I  would  raise  the  hand  vertically. 

Q.  Do  you  know  what  vehicles  have  the  right  of 


way? 


A.  Yes;  the  Fire  Department,  police  patrol, 
fire  patrol,  United  States  mail,  emergency  repair  and 
ambulances. 


36  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  Would  you  occupy  any  street  as  to  interfere 
with  or  interrupt  the  passage  of  other  vehicles  or 
street  cars? 

A.    No. 

Q.  In  waiting  at  the  curb,  would  you  give  place  to 
a  vehicle  about  to  take  on  or  let  off  passengers? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  What  is  a  public  highway? 

A.  Any  highway,  county  road,  state  road,  public- 
street,  avenue,  alley,  park,  parkway  or  public  place 
in  any  county,  city,  borough,  town  or  village. 

Q.  Would  you  display  the  number  plates  of  more 
than  one  State  at  any  time? 

A.  No. 

Q.  How  many  lights  should  be  displayed  and  what 
time  should  they  be  lighted? 

A.  Display  at  least  two  white  lights  on  the  front, 
to  be  visible  at  200  feet.  One  light  on  the  rear, 
which  shall  display  a  red  light  visible  from  the  rear. 
The  rear  lamp  must  also  throw  a  white  light  on  the 
license  plate,  visible  for  at  least  50  feet  in  the  di- 
rection from  which  the  machine  is  proceeding.  The 
lamps  should  be  lighted  at  least  from  one-half  hour 
after  sunset  to  one-half  hour  before  sunrise. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  speedometer  or  autometer? 

A.  To  register  the  speed  of  the  car  in  miles  per 
hour  and  the  distance  traveled. 

Q.  What  is  the  tonneau  of  an  automobile? 

A.  Rear  seats. 

Q.  On  entering  a  strange  city,  and  you  were  in 
doubt  about  the  traffic  regulations,  what  would  you 
do? 

A.  Upon  entering  the  city  I  would  stop  and  ask 
the  first  police  officer  I  saw  for  instructions. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  37 

Q.  Are  there  any  cities  that  require  blowing  of 
the  horn  at  every  street  intersection? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  If  a  licensed  chauffeur  has  the  car  out  on  busi- 
ness should  he  allow  any  friend  of  his  to  drive  the 
car? 

A.  No;  it  would  be  unlawful. 

Q.  If  you  had  to  leave  the  car  in  the  street  all 
night,  what  would  you  do? 

A.  I  would  leave  a  light  on  the  front  and  rear. 

Q.  What  would  you  do  if  you  were  witness  of  an 
accident  ? 

A.  I  would  stop  and  offer  help  if  I  could,  and  give 
my  name  to  the  party  as  a  witness  to  the  accident. 

Q.  Would  you  stop  your  car  in  front  of  a  fire 
hydrant  ? 

A.  No;  I  would  not  stop  a  car  within  ten  feet 
of  one. 

Q.  Name  the  important  parts  of  a  car  that  should 
be  examined  with  a  view  to  safety  before  starting  out. 

A.  The  steering  gear,  brakes,  nuts  on  wheels,  tires, 
spring  clips  and  body  bolts. 

Q.  What  would  you  do  in  approaching  a  railroad 
track  ? 

A.  I  would  run  slowly  and  be  cautious.  If  my 
view  of  the  tracks  were  obstructed  I  would  have 
some  one  to  go  ahead  and  warn  me  of  any  approach- 
ing danger  before  attempting  to  cross  the  tracks. 

Q.  When  driving  in  the  country  at  20  miles  an 
hour  could  you  be  arrested? 

A.  Yes,  if  the  road  was  congested  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  you  endanger  the  rights  of  others  on  the 
road  you  could  be  arrested  for  reckless  driving. 

Q.  Could  you  be  arrested  when  driving  at  12  miles 
an  hour  in  the  city? 


38  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  Yes;  if  the  streets  were  crowded  you  may  be 
considered  driving  recklessly. 

Q.  When  driving  in  the  city  when  is  it  compul- 
sory to  stop  the  car  ? 

A.  When  receiving  a  signal  from  a  police  officer 
at  the  street  crossings. 

Q.  Could  you  be  arrested  for  not  obeying  such  a 
signal  ?  ? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  If  you  were  driving  across  a  railroad  track, 
and  stalled  the  motor,  what  would  you  do? 

A.  If  I  did  not  have  time  to  start  the  engine  or 
push  the  machine  off  the  tracks  I  would  try  to 
flag  the  train.  If  too  late,  and  a  smash-up  was  cer- 
tain, I  would  direct  all  occupants  of  the  car  to  run 
in  the  direction  of  the  approaching  train,  so  as  to  be 
away  from  the  flying  debris  when  the  machine  was 
struck. 

Q.  Define  the  word  motor  vehicle? 

A.  It  includes  all  vehicles  containing  three  road 
wheels  or  more  that  are  propelled  by  any  power 
other  than  muscular  power,  except  such  vehicles  as 
run  only  upon  rails  or  tracks. 

Q.  What  is  a  chauffeur? 

A.  Any  one  operating  or  driving  a  motor  vehicle 
as  an  employe  or  for  hire. 

Q.  Is  it  unlawful  to  have  the  license  tags  carried 
on  the  machine  in  a  way  as  to  allow  them  to  swing? 

A.  Yes;  they  should  be  securely  fastened  to  pre- 
vent swinging. 

Q.  May  a  chauffeur  permit  any  other  person  to 
possess  or  use  his  license  or  badge? 

A.  No;  nor  shall  any  person  use  a  license  or 
badge  belonging  to  another  person. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  39 

Q.  May  an  unlicensed  chauffeur  drive  a  motor  ve- 
hicle? 

A.  No. 

Q.  May  a  chauffeur  drive  an  automobile  while 
his  license  is  suspended  or  revoked? 

A.  No. 

Q.  May  a  person  be  punished  for  making  a  false 
statement  in  his  application  for  license? 

A.  Yes;  he  would  be  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor. 

Q.  What  are  the  main  things  necessary  for  a 
motor  vehicle's  equipment  so  as  to  comply  with  the 
law? 

A.  To  have  a  thoroughly  efficient  brake  system, 
a  proper  signaling  device,  correct  number  of  lights, 
an  exhaust  muffler,  and  proper  license  tags  to  comply 
with  the  law  in  which  State  you  are  driving. 

Q.  Define  the  word  friction. 

A.  Resistance  to  the  motion  of  a  body,  caused 
by  .contact  with  the  surface  upon  which  it  moves. 

Q.  How  may  friction  of  the  bearings  and  all  mov- 
ing parts  on  an  automobile  be  reduced  to  a  min- 
imum? 

A.  By  having  all  moving  parts  properly  lubri- 
cated. 

Q.  Describe  briefly  how  lubricating  reduces  fric- 
tion. 

A.  When  moving  parts  are  properly  lubricated 
the  metal  surfaces  are  separated  by  a  continuous 
film  of  oil. 

Q.  What  is  generally  used  to  lubricate  a  sliding 
gear  transmission  ? 

A.  A  high-class  grease  free  from  acid. 

Q.  What  is  used  to  lubricate  the  differential? 

A.  The  same  quality  grease. 

Q.  WTiat  is  used  to  lubricate  the  motor? 


40  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  An  oil  that  is  specially  prepared  for  gasoline 
motors  should  be  used. 

Q.  How  is  the  transmission  lubricated? 

A.  They  are  generally  lubricated  by  inserting 
grease  through  a  hand  hole  in  the  top  of  the  case. 

Q.  How  are  the  differential  gears  lubricated? 

A.  The  same  way  as  the  transmission. 

Q.  Is  grease  used  on  the  engine  bearings  and  cyl- 
inders ? 

A.  No ;  a  good  cylinder  oil  is  used  for  the  engine. 

Q.  What  may  cause  insufficient  lubrication  in  the 
oiling  system? 

A.  Not  sufficient  oil  in  tank ;  oil  pump  not  work- 
ing properly ;  oil  pipe  may  be  broken  or  stopped  up ; 
oil  pipes  air-bound;  not  enough  pressure;  oilers  not 
adjusted  properly;  inferior  oil. 

Q.  May  graphite  be  used  for  lubricating  an  au- 
tomobile? 

A.  Yes ;  it  can  be  used  on  bearings  and  chains. 
It  may  also  be  used  for  lubricating  the  motor  to 
some  extent,  but  may  cause  clogging  the  valves. 

Q.  What  effect  does  the  weather  have  on  the  lubri- 
cation oil? 

A.  Lubricating  oil  will  thicken  up  in  cold  weather, 
requiring  a  different  adjustment  of  the  oilers. 

Q.  What  attention  should  be  given  the  oiling 
system? 

A.  The  oil  pipes  and  conduits  should  be  kept  free 
from  deposits.  See  that  there  are  no  broken  or 
cracked  pipes  and  always  have  plenty  of  oil  in  the 
tank. 

Q.  How  are  the  wheels  lubricated  on  most  cars  ? 

A.  The  wheels  have  to  be  removed  and  packed 
with  grease;  on  some  cars  by  filling  the  hub  cap 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  41 

with  grease  and  then  replacing  the  cap  forces  the 
grease  into  the  bearings. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  radiator  on  automobiles? 

A.  For  cooling  the  water. 

Q.  Do  all  gasoline  engines  have  radiators? 

A.  No ;  those  that  are  air-cooled  do  not  require 
any  water. 

Q.  Does  the  water  enter  the  top  or  bottom  of  the 
radiator  on  a  car  that  has  a  forced  circulation? 

A.  It  enters  the  top. 

Q.  Name  the  most  common  types  of  pumps  that 
are  used  for  circulating. 

A.  The  rotary  type,  gear,  wing  or  centrifugal 
pumps. 

Q.  State  what  two  methods  are  used  in  cooling 
the  cylinders? 

A.  Air  cooling  and  liquid  cooling. 

Q.  State  a  mixture  that  will  prevent  freezing  of 
the  water  at  a  temperature  above  zero;  and  below 
zero. 

A.  At  a  temperature  above  zero  use  30  per  cent, 
wood  alcohol;  below  zero  use  40  per  cent  wood  al- 
cohol. 

Q.  What  use  is   the   circulating  water  pump? 

A.  By  forcing  circulation  of  the  water  it  regu- 
lates the  temperature  of  the  water  in  the  jackets. 

Q.  Describe  briefly  the  air-cooling  system  of  a 
motor. 

A.  A  fan  driven  by  the  motor  forces  a  constant 
supply  of  cold  air  around  the  outside  surface  of  the 
cylinders. 

Q.  Describe  briefly  the  forced  circulation  for  cool- 
ing. 

A.  By  means  of  a  pump;  the  water  passes  from 
the  pump  and  is  forced  through  the  water  jackets, 


42  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

then  into  the  top  of  the  radiator,  out  the  bottom  and 
back  through  the  pump  again. 

Q.  Describe  briefly  the  thermo-syphon  cooling  sys- 
tem. 

A.  By  having  a  tank  of  water  situated  above  the 
level  of  the  water  jackets,  as  the  water  in  the  water 
jackets  becomes  heated  the  cold  water  in  the  tank 
forces  the  hot  water  out  of  the  jackets  into  the  tank, 
causing  an  automatic  circulation. 

Q.  Why  is  cooling  of  the  cylinders  necessary? 

A.  In  order  to  properly  lubricate  the  motor;  to 
prevent  pre-ignition. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  a  fan  on  a  gasoline  engine? 

A.  To  assist  in  drawing  air  through  the  radiator 
for  the  purpose  of  cooling  the  water. 

Q.  What  would  be  the  effect  if  the  engine  is  kept 
too  cool? 

A.  Less  power  will  be  developed  by  the  engine. 

Q.  What  is  considered  the  proper  temperature  to 
have  the  cylinders  for  efficient  work? 

A.  They  should  be  about  350  degrees  Fahrenheit. 

Q.  Why  is  cooling  the  engine  necessary? 

A.  (1)  To  permit  proper  lubrication.  (&)  To 
prevent  pre-ignition. 

Q.  What  advantage  has  the  air-cooled  engine  over 
the  water-cooled  engine? 

A.  There  is  no  trouble  of  any  kind  from  water 
leaks  and  no  fear  of  freezing  in  the  winter  time  and 
bursting  of  cylinders. 

Q.  What  disadvantages  has  the  air-cooled  engine? 

A.  Failure  to  keep  it  cool  enough  for  proper  lubri- 
cation. 

Q.  What  precautions  would  you  take  to  prevent 
the  water  in  the  radiator  and  engine  from  freezing 
in  cold  weather? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Bodk  43 

A.  It  is  well  to  mix  an  anti-freezing  solution  with 
the  water;  to  keep  the  engine  and  radiator  covered 
when  standing  idle  in  the  street. 

Q.  What  would  be  the  result  if  the  water  in  the 
radiator  or  water  jackets  is  allowed  to  freeze? 

A.  It  would  cause  the  bursting  of  the  water  jackets 
and  the  radiator. 

Q.  What  precaution  should  be  taken  to  prevent 
freezing  of  the  water  while  the  car  is  standing  out- 
side in  cold  weather  when  an  anti-freezing  solution 
is  not  used? 

A.  By  covering  the  radiator  with  a  robe  or  coat. 
This  will  retain  the  heat  for  a  considerable  time. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  the  intake  valve? 

A.  It  allows  the  proper  amount  of  explosive  mix- 
ture to  enter  the  motor. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  the  exhaust  valve? 

A.  To  provide  an  outlet  for  the  burnt  gases. 

Q.  How  many  revolutions  does  the  crankshaft 
make  to  one  opening  of  each  valve? 

A.  Two  revolutions. 

Q.  What  is  the  most  common  type  of  valve  used? 

A.  The  poppet  or  mushroom  type,  with  the  edges 
of  the  valve  beveled. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  the  timing  gears? 

A.  They  regulate  the  opening  and  closing  of  the 
valves  and  the  ignition  to  occur  at  the  proper  time. 

Q.  What  attention  should  be  given  the  valves? 

A.  They  should  be  examined  at  frequent  inter- 
vals, and  if  found  leaky  and  pitted  should  be  ground 
in  with  fine  emery. 

Q.  What  operates  the  valves? 

A.  The  valves  are  operated  by  a  cam  shaft? 

Q.  Is  the  valve  chamber  a  part  of  the  combustion 
chamber? 


44  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  What  is  the  rate  of  revolution  of  the  cam- 
shaft to  the  crankshaft? 

A.  The  camshaft  makes  one  revolution  to  two  of 
the  crankshaft. 

Q.  Which  center  should  the  inlet  valve  close  on? 

A.  It  should  close  at  the  end  of  the  suction  stroke. 

Q.  When  should  the  inlet  valve  open? 

A.  It  should  open  near  the  end  of  the  exhaust 
stroke. 

Q.  When  should  the  exhaust  valve  open? 

A.  It  should  open  at  the  end  of  the  explosion 
stroke. 

Q.  In  grinding  valves  is  a  complete  circular  move- 
ment correct? 

A.  No ;  it  would  be  disastrous. 

Q.  How  should  the  valves  be  ground? 

A.  They  should  be  ground  by  using  a  backward 
and  forward  movement,  lifting  the  valve  up  often  to 
change  its  position. 

Q.  How  can  the  valves  be  tested  to  see  if  they  are 
opening  and  closing  at  the  proper  time? 

A.  By  inserting  a  wire  through  the  pet  cock  in 
the  top  of  the  cylinder ;  then  turn  the  engine  over  by 
hand  and  watch  the  valves  to  see  if  they  close  and 
open  at  the  proper  time.  The  flywheels  on  some  cars 
are  marked  to  indicate  the  proper  time  the  valves 
should  open  and  close  when  the  marks  are  opposite 
the  pointer  that  is  placed  above  the  flywheel. 

Q.  What  effect  has  wear  on  the  valve  stem  or  the 
lifts? 

A.  It  affects  the  time  of  opening  and  closing  of 
the  valves. 

Q.  Do  the  valve  springs  open  or  close  the  valves? 

A.  Close  them. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  45 

Q.  What  opens  the  valves? 

A.  The  valves  are  lifted  open  by  the  cams  on  the 
camshaft. 

Q.  Of  what  use  are  the  valve  spring  caps  and  keys  ? 

A.  To  hold  the  tension  of  the  valve  spring  and 
to  keep  it  in  position. 

Q.  What  holds  the  valves  on  their  seats? 

A.  The  valve  springs. 

Q.  How  is  an  automatic  intake  valve  opened? 

A.  By  the  suction  produced  by  the  piston. 

Q.  Are  mechanically  operated  valves  usually  pro- 
vided with  some  means  for  changing  slightly  the  time 
of  opening  or  closing  or  adjusting  the  lift  of  the 
valve  ? 

A.  Yes ;  on  most  cars  the  valve  lift  is  provided 
with  an  adjustment. 

Q.  Should  there  be  a  space  between  the  valve  stem 
and  the  push  rod? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  About  how  much  space  should  be  between  the 
valve  stem  and  the  push  rod? 

A.  About  the  thickness  of  a  business  card. 

Q.  When  should  this  clearance  occur  on  both 
valves  ? 

A.  On  the  compression  and  working  strokes. 

Q.  How  could  you  determine  whether  or  not  such 
clearance  actually  exists? 

A.  By  sliding  a  small  card  between  the  valve  stem 
and  the  push  rod  while  the  engine  is  not  running 
and  the  valves  closed. 

Q.  What  is  the  effect  of  a  sticking  valve  stem? 

A.  It  causes  it  to  close  slowly  and  sometimes  it  does 
not  close  at  all. 

Q.  What  is  the  indication  that  valves  need  grind- 
ing? 


46  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  Lack  of  power,  poor  compression,  failure  to 
start  engine  on  spark  after  standing  idle  a  short  time. 

Q.  What  is  a  cam? 

A.  It  is  a  projection  on  a  shaft  to  produce  re- 
ciprocating motion. 

Q.  What  is  a  cam  used  most  for  on  automobiles? 

A.  It  is  used  to  open  and  allow  the  valves  to  close 
at  the  proper  time. 

Q.  What  constitutes  timing  a  motor? 

A.  To  have  the  valves  open  and  close  and  to  have 
the  spark  to  occur  at  the  proper  time. 

Q.  What  part  of  a  motor  is  required  to  move  in 
time  with  the  movement  of  the  piston? 

A.  The  valves. 

Q.  What  causes  heating  of  wheel  bearings? 

A.  Bearings  adjusted  too  tight;  insufficient  lubri- 
cation. 

Q.  What  are  the  two  most  common  bearings  used 
for  wheels? 

A.  The  ball  and  the  roller  bearings. 

Q.  What  is  a  thrust  bearing? 

A.  One  that  is  intended  to  sustain  end  thrust. 

Q.  What  is  an  annular  ball  bearing? 

A.  The  annular  ball  bearing  consists  of  three  ele- 
ments— the  balls  and  the  two  races. 

Q.  Do  ball  bearings  require  lubrication? 

A.  Yes. 

Q.  What  is  a  storage  battery?  Describe  it  to  the 
best  of  your  ability. 

A.  The  storage  battery,  so-called,  although  really 
it  does  not  store  electricity,  but  the  energy  of  an 
electric  current,  is  caused  to  produce  electrolytic  de- 
composition to  such  a  nature  as  to  independently  pro- 
duce a  current  on  the  removal  of  the  electrolyzing 
current.  The  battery  is  a  combination  of  cells  which 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  47 

consists  of  plates  of  lead  immersed  in  diluted  sul- 
phuric acid,  and  are  charged  by  the  passage  through 
the  liquid  from  one  plate  to  another  of  an  electric  cur- 
rent from  some  external  source.  The  charging  cur- 
rent produces  an  electrolytic  decomposition  of  the 
inert  liquid  between  the  plates,  depositing  the  electro- 
positive radicals  on  the  plates  connected  with  the 
negative  terminals  of  the  source,  and  the  electro-neg- 
ative radicals  on  the  plates  connected  with  the  posi- 
tive terminals.  On  the  cessation  of  the  charging  cur- 
rent and  the  connection  of  the  charged  plates  by  a 
conductor  outside  the  liquid,  a  current  is  produced 
which  flows  through  the  liquid  from  the  plates  cov- 
ered with  the  electro-positive  radicals  to  that  cov- 
ered with  the  electro-negative  radicals,  or  in  the  op- 
posite direction  to  that  of  the  charging  current. 
When  this  discharge  is  thoroughly  effected,  the  cells 
become  inert,  and  will  furnish  no  further  current 
until  again  charged  by  the  passage  of  a  current  from 
some  external  source  again. 

Q.  How  can  an  exhausted  dry  cell  battery  be  tem- 
porarily restored? 

A.  By  boring  holes  in  the  pitch  at  the  top  of  the 
cell  and  moistening  the  interior  with  a  solution  of 
sal  ammoniac,  salt  water  or  vinegar. 

Q.  What  care  should  be  taken  in  placing  a  storage 
battery  in  position  ? 

A.  Care  should  be  taken  so  as  not  to  tilt  the  bat- 
tery and  spill  the  acid,  or  jar  or  knock  it. 

Q.  When  does  a  battery  deteriorate  the  most? 

A.  When  it  is  not  in  use. 

Q.  Are  dry  cells  intended  for  constant  service? 

A.  No ;  they  are  made  to  be  used  for  intermittent 
service. 


48  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  Which  is  considered  the  most  reliable  for  igni- 
tion on  a  gasoline  motor,  dry  cells  or  a  storage  bat- 
tery? 

A.  A  storage  battery. 

Q.  Why  is  a  storage  battery  considered  more  re- 
liable than  a  dry  cell? 

A.  Storage  batteries  are  an  advantage  over  dry 
cells  in  that  they  will  at  least  maintain  a  steady 
pressure  or  voltage  during  the  life  of  a  charge,  and 
they  do  not  drop  in  voltage  or  pressure  while  being 
used,  or  until  their  amperage,  or  quantity  of  cur- 
rent originally  put  into  them  is  consumed. 

Q.  How  are  the  positive  and  negative  poles  of  a 
battery  generally  marked? 

A.  They  are  marked  +  for  positive  and  —  for 
negative.  On  some  batteries  they  are  marked  P  for 
positive  and  N  for  negative. 

Q.  In  connecting  the  wires  to  the  battery  what 
care  should  be  taken? 

A.  To  see  that  the  wires  are  connected  to  their 
proper  poles ;  have  the  terminals  tight  and  free  from 
dirt. 

Q.  When  a  storage  battery  will  not  furnish 
enough  current  for  proper  ignition  can  it  be  re- 
charged ? 

A.  Yes;  they  can  be  recharged  by  the  passage 
through  the  liquid  from  one  plate  to  another  of  an 
electric  current  from  some  external  source. 

Q.  What  is  a  primary  battery? 

A.  One  that  generates  electric  current  within 
itself. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  resilient? 

A.  It  means  to  bound,  to  spring,  to  leap,  rebound- 
ing, as  applied  to  a  rubber  tire,  distinguishing  from 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  49 

a  dead  or  hard-riding  tire.  A  tire  of  resiliency  is 
easy-riding,  active,  bounding  and  speedy. 

Q.  State  the  causes  of  tire  blow-outs. 

A.  Punctures,  cuts,  bruises,  wheels  out  of  align- 
ment, tires  not  properly  inflated,  overloading,  speed- 
ing and  faulty  tire  construction. 

Q.  In  patching  an  inner  tube  would  you  place  the 
patch  on  the  tube  while  the  cement  is  wet  or  damp? 

A.  No;  I  would  wait  until  both  surfaces  were 
thoroughly  dry  before  applying  the  patch. 

Q.  How  are  the  tube  and  patch  treated  before  ap- 
plying the  cement? 

A.  The  tube  and  patch  should  be  cleaned  of  all 
dirt  and  grease  by  washing  them  off  with  a  little  gas- 
oline, then  rough  both  surfaces  with  a  piece  of  sand- 
paper. 

Q.  Could  an  inner  tube  be  repaired  with  a  piece  of 
friction  fabric? 

A.  No;  a  patch  of  rubber  should  always  be  used, 
as  friction  fabric  is  not  airtight. 

Q.  How  can  a  tire  casing  or  shoe  be  temporarily 
repaired  ? 

A.  By  placing  a  blow-out  patch  over  the  hole  on 
the  inside  of  the  hole.  Another  should  also  be  placed 
on  the  outside  of  the  shoe.  These  patches  are  con- 
sidered necessary  parts  of  a  car's  equipment. 

Q.  What  expense  is  considered  one  of  the  chief 
items  of  car  maintenance  cost? 

A.  The  tires. 

Q.  What  rule,  if  followed,  will  materially  decrease 
tire  bills? 

A.  Keep  the  tires  inflated  to  the  proper  riding 
pressure. 

Q.  What  should  be  done  to  a  small  cut  in  the  cas- 
ing? 


50  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  It  should  be  properly  repaired  before  serious 
harm  is  done.  There  are  several  preparations  on 
the  market  for  such  purposes. 

Q.  What  would  be  the  result  if  the  small  cuts  are 
not  closed? 

A.  The  dirt  from  the  road  forces  itself  into  such 
cuts,  gradually  working  in  between  the  rubber  tread 
and  the  fabric  portion  of  the  tire,  causing  them  to 
separate.  When  the  separation  starts  the  entire 
tread  will  go  to  pieces  with  remarkable  rapidity. 

Q.  If  one  did  not  have  a  blow-out  patch  what 
could  be  done  with  a  bursted  tire? 

A.  If  one  had  an  extra  old  shoe  that  was  of  no 
value  a  section  could  be  cut  out  of  it  and  placed  over 
the  hole  in  the  damaged  shoe.  A  temporary  repair 
to  a  casing,  that  will  sometimes  last  a  long  time  if 
done  properly,  is  to  wrap  a  piece  of  rope  around  the 
hole  on  the  outside  of  the  tire  for  a  distance  of  six 
inches  on  each  side  of  the  blow-out.  Secure  the  ends 
to  the  spokes  of  the  wheel  and  inflate  tire. 

Q.  How  should  spare  casings  be  carried? 

A.  They  should  be  carried  in  casing  covers,  which 
should  be  dark  in  color,  as  sunlight  has  an  injurious 
effect  on  rubber. 

Q.  How  should  extra  inner  tubes  be  carried? 

A.  They  should  be  carried  in  a  tube  bag  and 
never  allowed  to  lie  loose  in  a  box,  as  they  are  liable 
to  chafe. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  way  to  store  and  care  for 
tires  during  the  winter? 

A.  The  tires  should  be  removed  from  the  wheels 
and  washed  carefully  with  soap  and  water.  Wrap 
them  in  strips  of  paper  or  cloth  and  store  in  a  dark 
place  in  which  the  temperature  should  be  about  40 
degrees  Fahrenheit. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  51 

Q.  If  the  car  is  not  to  be  used  for  a  considerable 
length  of  time  what  would  you  do  to  the  tires? 

A.  The  wheels  should  be  jacked  up,  and  let  out 
most  of  the  air,  leaving  only  about  five  pounds  in 
each  tire.  This  will  keep  the  tubes  in  shape  and 
also  keep  them  soft  and  pliable. 

Q.  What  would  be  the  result  to  the  tires  if  the 
wheels  do  not  run  true? 

A.  No  matter  how  slightly  the  wheels  are  out  of 
true  they  are  always  running  at  a  slight  angle  to 
the  direction  traveled  by  the  car,  which  produces  a 
severe  grinding  between  the  tread  and  the  road,  which 
takes  off  the  rubber  like  a  grindstone.  No  tire  will 
last  long  running  under  these  conditions. 

Q.  State  a  way  how  one  could  determine  if  the 
wheels  are  true? 

A.  By  using  a  straight-edge  and  measure  between 
the  felloes  of  the  wheel  or  the  edges  of  the  rims  on  the 
wheels  at  the  point  directly  in  front  of  the  front 
axle.  Mark  this  distance  carefully  and  measure  in 
the  same  way  across  the  wheel  directly  back  of  the 
front  axle  or  opposite  from  where  the  first  measure- 
ment was  taken.  The  difference  between  these  two 
distances  will  be  the  amount  that  the  wheels  are  out 
of  true. 

Q.  Are  quick  stops  injurious  to  the  tires? 

A.  Quick  stops,  while  occasionally  necessary,  are 
always  injurious  to  the  tires. 

Q.  How  can  the  evil  effects  of  quick  stopping  be 
reduced  to  a  minimum? 

A.  By  perfect  adjustment  of  the  brakes,  so  that 
the  rear  wheels  will  take  up  equal  portions  of  the 
strain. 

Q.  Is  turning  corners  at  high  speed  considered 
skillful  driving? 


52  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  No;  it  is  a  very  expensive  method  of  demon- 
strating skillful  driving,  as  it  produces  the  same  re- 
sult to  the  tires  as  quick  stopping  does. 

Q.  What  effect  will  overloading  have  on  the  cas- 
ings ? 

A.  Overloading  a  tire  will  break  down  the  fabric 
in  the  side  walls  and  eventually  a  blow-out  will  occur. 

Q.  Why  do  blow-outs  occur  sometimes  while  the 
car  is  standing  still  or  running  on  a  perfectly  smooth 
road  ? 

A.  Blow-outs  like  that  occur  from  hitting  a  sharp 
obstruction  with  such  force  that  the  inner  fabric  is 
bruised  and  weakened,  possibly  torn,  and  eventually 
it  gives  way  and  a  blow-out  occurs,  perhaps  days  or 
weeks  after  the  orginal  injury  was  received. 

Q.  What  is  the  weakest  part  of  a  tire? 

A.  The  side  walls,  for  here  most  of  the  bending 
action  takes  place.  The  more  the  side  walls  are 
kneaded  or  bent  the  sooner  they  will  break  down  and 
separate.  If  a  tire  is  run  partially  inflated  this 
kneading  action  is  violent,  and  the  tire  is  bent 
sharply  every  time  it  hits  an  obstruction. 

Q.  What  causes  rim  cuts  on  the  tires  ? 

A.  The  chief  cause  is  riding  the  tire  without  suf- 
ficient air  pressure.  Another  reason  is  riding  the 
tire  on  a  rim  that  is  not  true,  that  has  been  somewhat 
battered  or  misshapen. 

Q.  What  keeps  a  tire  from  creeping  on  the  rim? 

A.  The  tire  is  kept  from  creeping  by  friction.  The 
air  pressure  in  the  tire  forces  the  bead  of  the  tire 
against  the  clinch  of  the  rim,  causing  a  friction  of  the 
two  surfaces,  although  some  tires  are  held  by  tire 
lugs. 

Q.  What  holds  the  inner  tube  from  creeping? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  53 

A.  The  valve  stem  on  the  inner  tube  is  provided 
with  a  nut,  and  when  the  nut  is  drawn  tight  it  holds 
the  inner  tube  in  place. 

Q.  What  is  known  as  the  running  gear? 

A.  The  wheels,  axles,  etc.,  of  the  car,  distinguish- 
ing from  the  body. 

Q.  What  is  the  most  common  type  of  automobile 
wheel  used? 

A.  The  artillery  wheel. 

Q.  Why  is  it  called  an  artillery  wheel? 

A.  From  its  use  on  gun  carriages. 

Q.  WThat  kind  of  spokes  are  used  on  this  wheel? 

A.  Wooden  spokes,  made  from  the  best  quality  of 
wood. 

Q.  How  are  the  spokes  fastened  to  the  hub? 

A.  They  are  bolted  to  the  iron  or  steel  hubs ;  the 
outer  ends  of  the  spokes  are  mortised  into  a  wooden 
felloe. 

Q.  What  part  of  an  automobile  is  considered  dead 
load? 

A.  All  weights  below  the  springs  are  dead  load. 

Q.   State  the  advantages  of  a  shaft  drive. 

A.  It  is  quiet,  clean  and  convenient. 

Q.  What  disadvantages  has  the  shaft  drive? 

A.  It  is  complicated  and  hard  to  repair. 

Q.  What  advantages  has  the  chain  drive? 

A.  It  is  efficient,  flexible  and  permits  of  proper 
balance,  easy  to  repair. 

Q.  What  disadvantages  has  the  chain  drive? 

A.  Noisy,  breakage  of  chains,  constant  adjusting 
and  oiling  of  chains. 

Q.  Where  are  the  universal  joints  located? 

A.  They  connect  the  driving  shaft  to  the  trans- 
mission and  differential;  another  universal  joint  is 


54  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

also  used  to  connect  the  transmission  with  the  clutch. 

Q.  Why  are  universal  joints  necessary? 

A.  They  take  up  any  difference  in  alignment  of 
the  different  parts. 

Q.  On  a  chain-driven  automobile  how  often  should 
the  chains  be  cleaned? 

A.  Every  month. 

Q.  What  is  the  proper  method  to  use  in  cleaning 
the  chains  ? 

A.  Remove  the  chains  and  allow  them  to  soak  in 
kerosene  for  several  hours;  then  wash  them  off  with 
gasoline.  Dry  chains  and  soak  them  in  a  mixture  of 
hot  grease  and  graphite.  Remove  chains  from 
grease,  hang  up  and  allow  the  grease  to  cool;  then 
wipe  off  the  excess  grease. 

Q.  What  are  the  main  points  in  the  care  of  an 
automobile? 

A.  Keeping  every  part  well  lubricated  and  having 
all  parts  properly  adjusted,  and  a  careful  handling 
of  the  car. 

Q.  How  may  a  broken  body  spring  be  temporarily 
repaired  ? 

A.  By  placing  a  block  of  wood  between  the  frame 
and  spring  and  securing  it  by  wrapping  it  with  a 
rope  or  wire. 

Q.  Would  you  run  the  engine  to  its  maximum  while 
the  car  is  standing  idle? 

A.  No ;  as  it  puts  an  unusual  strain  on  the  differ- 
ent parts. 

Q.  What  is  an  important  thing  to  remember  be- 
fore cranking  an  automobile  engine? 

A.  To  be  sure  the  spark  lever  is  fully  retarded, 
so  as  to  prevent  a  back  kick. 

Q.  If  a  car  is  to  be  stored  in  a  cold  place,  what 
precautions  should  be  taken? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  55 

A.  All  water  should  be  drawn  off  to  prevent  freez- 
ing and  possibly  bursting  the  radiator  and  cylinders. 

Q.  In  placing  pistons  into  the  cylinders  what  care 
should  be  taken  with  the  rings? 

A.  Care  should  be  taken  not  to  break  them  and 
to  see  that  they  are  in  their  proper  positions. 

Q.  What  precautions  should  be  taken  to  prevent 
overheating  of  engine? 

A.  Run  with  spark  lever  advanced  to  proper  po- 
sition. Do  not  race  engine  when  using  low  gear. 
See  that  water  pump  is  working  properly.  Keep 
radiator  and  water  jackets  free  from  obstructions 
and  full  of  water.  Keep  fan  belt  tight.  Muffler 
should  be  cleaned  occasionally.  Have  carburetor 
adjusted  properly. 

Q.  Name  several  parts  of  an  automobile. 

A.  Axle,  bearings,  bod}7,  brakes,  cams,  carburetor, 
chains,  clutch,  coil,  connecting  rods,  crank  case, 
crankpins,  crankshaft,  cylinder,  differential,  equal- 
izer, exhaust  pipe,  flywheel,  frame,  magneto,  muf- 
fler, piston,  radiator,  steering  knuckle,  spark  plug, 
body  spring,  starting  crank,  steering  wheel,  throttle, 
timer,  transmission,  universal  joint,  exhaust  valve, 
wheels. 

Q.  What  precaution  should  be  taken  in  putting  in 
a  gasket? 

A.  Not  to  break  it;  to  have  center  of  gasket  re- 
moved and  have  the  flanges  clean. 

Q.  What  precautions  should  be  taken  with  an 
acetylene  light? 

A.  The  gas  should  not  be  allowed  to  flow  un- 
light€d  in  a  closed  room,  as  it  would  endanger  the 
life  of  any  living  creature.  The  burners  and  pipes 
should  be  kept  free  from  dust  and  carbon.  Also  to 


56  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

see  that  there  is  no  leak  of  gas  around  the  genera- 
tor, gas  tank  or  piping. 

Q.  Is  kerosene  good  for  cleaning  the  inside  of  the 
cylinders  ? 

A.  Yes;  kerosene  should  be  injected  into  the  cyl- 
inders and  allowed  to  stand  for  several  hours.  It 
will  help  to  remove  the  carbon  deposits  from  the  com- 
bustion chamber  and  free  the  piston  rings. 

Q.  What  rule  should  be  observed  when  it  becomes 
necessary  to  remove  separable  parts  from  an  auto- 
mobile ? 

A.  To  have  all  parts  properly  marked  to  facilitate 
reassembling. 

Q.  What  is  a  brake? 

A.  A  piece  of  mechanism  for  retarding  or  stop- 
ping motion. 

Q.  What  is  meant  by  skidding? 

A.  For  a  car  to  slide  sidewise. 

Q.  What  causes  skidding? 

A.  A  sudden  application  of  the  brakes  while  driv- 
ing on  a  wet  or  muddy  roadway. 

Q.  How  can  you  ordinarily  prevent  a  car  from 
skidding  ? 

A.  By  careful  driving  and  applying  the  brakes 
gradually. 

Q.  Which  axle  are  the  driving  wheels  on? 

A.  Rear  axle. 

Q.  On  what  part  of  the  car  do  the  brakes  act? 

A.  They  act  on  either  the  hub  or  rear  wheels — 
transmission  or  differential. 

Q.  By  what  method  are  the  brakes  worked? 

A.  They  are  operated  by  either  a  foot  pedal  or 
hand  lever. 

Q.  Is  there  any  way  of  equalizing  the  same  pres- 
sure on  each  brake? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  57 

A.  Yes ;  many  cars  are  equipped  with  an  equalizer. 

Q.  What  is  an  equalizer? 

A.  A  device  to  insure  the  equal  action  of  both 
brakes,  so  that  they  will  act  with  the  same  tension, 
thus  preventing  the  car  from  skidding  or  swerving. 

Q.  What  is  a  contracting  band  brake? 

A.  One  that  acts  on  the  outside  of  the  brake  drum. 

Q.  What  is  an  expanding  band  brake? 

A.  One  that  acts  on  the  inside  of  the  brake  drum. 

Q.  How  should  the  brakes  be  used? 

A.  They  should  be  applied  as  gradually  as  pos- 
sible. 

Q.  Which  brake  is  most  commonly  used? 

A.  The  foot  brake. 

Q.  If  oil  and  grease  get  on  the  brake  band  surface, 
what  would  be  the  result? 

A.  The  brakes  would  not  hold  enough  to  stop  the 
car. 

Q.  What  should  be  done? 

A.  The  brakes  should  be  taken  off  and  cleaned  at 
once.  If  this  should  happen  where  one  did  not  have 
the  time  to  take  the  brakes  off  gasoline  could  be 
squirted  around  the  brakes  to  wash  the  grease  off, 
or  sand  thrown  on  the  brake  bands  will  help  consid- 
erably. 

Q.  Should  the  brakes  be  applied  while  the  clutch 
is  in? 

A.  No. 

Q.  What  symptoms  show  the  brakes  need  adjust- 
ing. 

A.  Failure  to  stop  the  car  properly  and  a  desire 
for  the  car  to  skid. 

Q.  How  can  you  get  better  braking  force  in  going 
down  a  steep  hill? 


58  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A.  By  putting  the  gear  lever  in  the  low  speed  and 
throwing  the  switch  off,  then  let  the  clutch  in.  This 
will  hold  the  car  back  considerably.  You  can  also 
use  the  brake  as  well. 

Q.  How  often  should  the  brakes  be  examined? 

A.  They  should  be  examined  daily. 

Q.  When  would  you  use  the  brakes  ? 

A.  For  stopping  or  retarding  the  motion  of  the 
car. 

Q.  Why  is  asbestos  used  on  some  brakes? 

A.  On  account  of  its  high  resistance  to  heat. 

Q.  What  is  important  about  the  steering  gear? 

A.  It  should  be  cleaned,  oiled  and  thoroughly  ex- 
amined at  frequent  intervals  to  see  that  all  parts 
are  tight  and  in  place. 

Q.  Describe  the  worm  and  sector  irreversible  steer- 
ing gear. 

A.  An  irreversible  steering  gear  must  be  turned 
from  the  steering  wheel,  and  cannot  be  moved  by 
pushing  on  the  front  wheels. 

Q.  Is  this  an  advantage? 

A.  Yes;  for  the  driver  does  not  feel  any  motion 
of  the  steering  wheel  when  the  front  wheels  go  over 
inequalities  in  the  road. 

Q.  How  may  a  broken -steer  ing  rod  be  temporarily 
repaired  ? 

A.  By  fastening  a  piece  of  pipe  or  an  iron  rod 
against  the  broken  parts  and  wrapping  them  to- 
gether with  rope  or  wire.  If  the  pipe  or  iron  rod 
could  not  be  secured,  a  strong  branch  of  a  tree  would 
answer. 

Q.  Why  are  buffer  springs  used  on  most  cars  at  the 
ends  of  the  steering  connecting  rods? 

A.  Their  use  is  to  absorb  the  shocks  caused  by 
rough  roads. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  59 

Q.  What  is  the  best  method  of  filling  a  gasoline 
tank? 

A.  It  is  well  to  place  a  piece  of  chamois  in  the 
funnel  for  the  purpose  of  straining  out  all  floating 
particles,  as  well  as  water,  from  the  gasoline.  Fine 
wire  gauze  may  be  used  as  a  strainer,  but  it  will  not, 
of  course,  exclude  water  that  may  be  mixed  with 
the  gasoline. 

Q.  Would  you  hunt  for  a  gasoline  leak  with  an 
open  light? 

A.  No ;  the  result  of  finding  it  may  be  disastrous. 

Q.  Would  you  pour  gasoline  out  in  a  room  where 
there  is  an  open  light? 

A.  No;  because  the  vapor  of  gasoline  will  be 
drawn  to  any  nearby  fire,  candle,  gaslight  or  lamp. 

Q.  Would  you  leave  a  gasoline  vessel  uncovered? 

A.  No ;  because  the  currents  of  air  draw  out  the 
vapor. 

Q.  Would  you  smoke  while  filling  the  gasoline 
tank? 

A.  No. 

Q.  Would  you  fill  the  gasoline  tank  entirely  full? 

A.  No;  I  would  always  leave  an  air  space  at  the 
top. 

Q.  Will  water  put  out  a  gasoline  fire? 

A.  No;  it  is  useless  for  such  a  fire. 

Q.  What  will  put  out  a  gasoline  fire? 

A.  Sand,  earth  or  ammonia  will  smother  a  gasoline 
fire  if  confined  in  a  small  place. 

Q.  How  could  you  tell  the  amount  of  gasoline  that 
is  in  the  tank  at  night? 

A.  By  using  an  electric  or  pocket  flashlight,  or 
by  inserting  a  stick  down  in  the  tank. 

Q.  How  is  gasoline  obtained? 

A.  Gasoline  is  a  product  of  crude  petroleum. 


60  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  How  may  a  broken  gasoline  pipe  be  tempo- 
rarily repaired? 

A.  By  placing  a  piece  of  rubber  tubing  over  the 
broken  ends. 

Q.  How  may  a  small  hole  in  the  gasoline  pipe  be 
temporarily  repaired? 

A.  By  forcing  a  piece  of  soap  into  the  hole  and 
wrapping  a  soaped  rag  around  it. 

Q.  In  what  style  of  motor  is  the  crank  case  used 
for  compression  of  the  mixture? 

A.  The  two-cycle  motor. 

Q.  Why  is  this  motor  called  two-cycle? 

A.  Because  it  completes  the  series  of  operations  in 
two  strokes  of  the  piston  instead  of  four;  hence  the 
name  two-cycle. 

Q.  State  how  the  two-cycle  motor  completes  the 
series  of  operations  with  two  strokes  of  the  piston. 

A.  The  upward  stroke  of  the  piston  produces  a 
vacuum  in  the  crank  case.  The  crank  case  being  in 
communication  with  the  carburetor,  the  mixture  is 
first  drawn  into  the  crank  case.  On  the  return  or 
downward  stroke  of  the  piston  the  charge  is  com- 
pressed in  the  crank  case.  Just  before  the  piston 
reaches  the  end  of  this  stroke  it  uncovers  a  port  in 
the  cylinder  which  is  in  communication  with  the 
crank  case  by  means  of  a  by-pass  into  the  cylinder. 
As  the  mixture  enters  the  cylinder  it  strikes  a  de- 
flecting plate  on  the  end  of  the  piston,  forcing  the 
gas  toward  the  cylinder  head,  so  that  it  will  not 
pass  directly  across  and  out  of  the  exhaust  port. 
On  the  next  or  upward  stroke  the  mixture  is  com- 
pressed between  the  piston  and  the  cylinder  head 
and  ignited  and  exploded  the  same  as  a  four-cycle 
motor.  Before  the  piston  reaches  the  end  of  the 
explosion  stroke  and  before  the  intake  port  is  un- 
covered the  exhaust  port  is  uncovered  and  the  ex- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  61 

haust  passes  out  into  the  muffler.  The  stroke  also 
forces  the  mixture  from  the  crank  case  into  the  cyl- 
inder with  such  force  as  to  clear  the  cylinder  of  all 
burned  gases.  You  can  readily  see  that  the  com- 
pression stroke -for  the  cylinder  is  also  the  suction 
stroke  for  the  crank  case,  and  the  explosion  stroke 
is  the  compression  stroke  for  the  crank  case. 

Q.  In  how  many  revolutions  of  the  flywheel  are 
the  four  operations  performed  in  a  two-cycle  motor? 

A.  One  revolution. 


THE  FOLLOWING  QUESTIONS  AND 

ANSWERS  REFER  TO  THE 

ELECTRIC  VEHICLE. 

Q.  What  is  the  first  thing  the  driver  of  an  electric 
carriage  should  learn? 

A.  He  should  first  learn  to  read  the  meter. 

Q.  What  does  the  meter  indicate? 

A.  The  amount  of  electric  motive  force  (volts)  and 
the  flow  of  current  will  be  indicated  on  the  meter 
in  amperes. 

Q.  Why  is  reading  the  meter  so  important? 

A.  If  one  will  familiarize  himself  with  the  reading 
of  the  meter  he  will  never  get  left  anywhere  by  rea- 
son of  an  absolute  discharge  of  the  batteries. 

Q.  What  rule  should  be  observed  before  placing 
the  controller  key  in  position? 

A.  Have  the  controller  lever  at  off  position. 

Q.  In  starting  an  electric  carriage  should  the  con- 
troller lever  be  pushed  to  the  extreme  forward  po- 
sition at  once? 

A.  No ;  the  controller  lever  should  be  moved  for- 
ward slowly  and  start  the  carriage  gently,  after 
which  the  lever  can  be  moved  steadily  forward  to 
the  stop. 


62  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  If  the  carriage  is  started  in  this  manner  what 
will  it  accomplish? 

A.  By  so  doing  it  will  avoid  the  jerk  and  jump 
that  is  unpleasant,  and  will  save  current. 

Q.  What  is  the  most  important  thing  a  driver  of 
an  electric  vehicle  should  figure  on? 

A.  The  driver  should  figure  at  all  times  to  save 
the  current. 

Q.  State  several  ways  to  save  current  in  driving. 

A.  By  shutting  the  current  off  and  coasting  a  hun- 
dred feet  to  the  place  at  which  you  desire  to  stop. 
Shut  the  current  off  and  coast  around  all  corners. 
Coast  down  all  hills  with  the  current  off.  Consider- 
able current  can  be  saved  in  this  manner. 

Q.  Can  a  good  driver  get  more  mileage  out  of  an 
electric  vehicle  than  the  inexperienced  or  the  indif- 
ferent driver? 

A.  Yes;  a  good  driver  will  easily  get  ten  miles 
longer  run. 

Q.  What  is  a  resistance  box? 

A.  A  box  containing  a  number  of  coils  for  reduc- 
ing the  flow  of  electric  current. 

Q.  Define  the  word  resistance. 

A.  Electric  ratio  between  the  electric  motive  force 
of  a  circuit  and  the  current  that  passes  therein. 

Q.  What  is  a  compound  wound  motor? 

A.  It  is  a  motor  whose  field  magnets  or  poles  are 
excited  by  more  than  one  circuit  of  coils. 

Q.  What  is  a  multi-polar  motor? 

A.  It  is  a  motor  of  more  poles  than  two ;  the  mul- 
tiple of  two. 

Q.  What  is  a  bi-polar  motor? 

A.  A  motor  of  two  poles  only. 

Q.  Of  what  use  is  the  controller  lever? 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  63 

A.  The  controller  governs  the  current  of  elec- 
tricity from  the  battery  and  permits  the  driver  to 
change  the  speed  of  the  vehicle  at  will. 

Q.  What  does  it  mean  when  it  is  said  the  battery 
is  discharged? 

A.  The  point  at  which  the  battery  is  discharged 
or  empty. 

Q.  What  is  a  volt  ammeter? 

A.  It  is  an  instrument  combining  a  volt  meter  and 
ammeter. 

Q.  What  is  an  ohm? 

A.  It  is  the  practical  unit  of  electric  resistance. 

Q.  Of  what  use  are  the  brushes  on  an  electric 
vehicle  ? 

A.  They  are  used  for  conveying  the  electricity  of 
the  armature  through  the  commutator. 

Q.  What  is  the  function  of  a  commutator  in  a 
dynamo  electric  machine? 

A.  In  a  dynamo  electric  machine  the  currents 
change  or  alternate  their  direction  as  many  times  in 
one  revolution  of  the  armature  as  there  are  poles  in 
the  machine.  The  commutator  is  that  part  of  the 
machine  that  causes  these  currents  to  flow  in  one  and 
the  same  direction  in  the  external  circuit. 

Q.  In  what  kind  of  weather  will  the  mileage  of  an 
electric  vehicle  be  materially  reduced  ? 

A.  Freezing  weather. 

Q.  What  rule  should  be  observed  when  an  elec- 
tric vehicle  is  to  be  left  standing  alone? 

A.  Always  remove  the  controller  key. 

Q.  Do  the  batteries  keep  in  better  condition  by 
using  them  daily  or  by  leaving  them  stand  idle? 

A.  The  batteries  are  in  better  condition  if  used 
daily. 


64  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Q.  Is  it  injurious  to  a  battery  to  leave  it  stand 
discharged  for  a  length  of  time? 

A.  Yes;  very  injurious. 

Q.  Will  a  sandy,  muddy  or  hilly  road  use  more 
current  than  a  smooth  and  level  road  would? 

A.  Yes ;  considerably  more. 

Besides  the  questions  and  answers  in  this  book,  one 
should  also  study  the  automobile  laws  of  the  State  in 
which  they  wish  to  secure  a  license.  If  in  doubt  as 
to  the  laws  and  traffic  regulations  of  any  State  or 
city,  write  to  the  proper  state  or  city  authorities 
for  detailed  information  regarding  the  law,  which 
will  promptly  be  sent  you. 


66  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

INCREASED  POWER  DUE  TO  VALVE 
CONSTRUCTION. 

In  the  latest  model  of  the  Stearns  line,  the  Stearns- 
Knight,  a  new  type  of  motor  is  used.  The  greatest 
feature  of  this  motor  is  the  use  of  sliding  sleeve 
valves  in  place  of  the  old  style  cam  and  spring- 
operated  valves.  This  valve  mechanism  was  invented 
and  patented  by  Chas.  Y.  Knight,  of  Chicago. 

This  improvement  in  the  design  and  operation  of 
the  valves  has  eliminated  all  noise  in  this  part  of  the 
mechanism  of  a  gasoline  motor.  Valve  action  con- 
sists of  two  concentric  sleeves  sliding  up  and  down 
between  the  piston  and  cylinder  walls.  These  sleeves 
open  and  close  wide  slots  or  ports  opening  directly 
into  the  combustion  chamber  through  which  the  inlet 
and  exhaust  gases  pass.  These  sleeves  are  moved  up 
and  down  by  small  connecting  rods  from  a  crank  or 
eccentric  shaft  in  about  the  same  manner  as  the  slide 
valves  of  a  steam  engine  are  operated.  This  shaft 
is  driven  by  a  silent  chain  and  the  usual  noise  of 
timing  gears  is  eliminated.  Throughout  the  whole 
travel  of  the  valve,  their  control  and  quietness  is 
absolute.  The  old  style  valves  were  lifted  from 
their  seats  by  a  cam  and  brought  back  again  by  a 
heavy  spring.  The  noise  of  the  cam  striking  the 
valve  when  it  started  to  lift  and  that  of  the  valve 
striking  its  seat  when  closed  by  the  spring,  cannot  be 
eliminated,  although  many  more  or  less  successful 
attempts  have  been  made  to  muffle  this  noise. 

The  quietness  of  the  Knight-type  valve  mechanism 
proves  its  reliability,  for  noise  in  any  mechanism  is 
a  sure  indication  of  wear  or  the  tendency  to  wear. 
With  the  old  system,  the  clashing  parts  were  hard- 
ened to  minimize  the  wear,  and  enclosed  to  muffle 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  67 

the  noise.  The  new  system  eliminates  the  cause  of 
the  trouble  by  a  radical  change  in  design.  The 
wearing  in  of  the  reciprocating  sleeves  adds  to  the 
efficiency  of  the  motor  instead  of  destroying  it. 
There  are  no  valves  to  grind,  no  cams  and  rollers  to 
wear,  no  springs  to  weaken,  no  adjustments  to  make. 
The  discarding  of  these  parts  has  simplified  the 
operating  mechanism  and  has  made  the  cylinder 
castings  less  intricate.  The  whole  mechanism  is  but 
another  instance  of  where  correctness  of  design  has 
produced  simplicity  and  reliability. 

The  increased  power  produced  by  these  sleeve 
valve  motors  has  shown  to  a  remarkable  extent  the 
relative  inefficiency  of  the  best  type  of  poppet  valve 
motors.  At  low  engine  speeds  this  is  not  so  notice- 
able, for  the  cam  and  spring  operated  valves  are 
then  at  their  best.  At  high  speeds,  however,  their 
action  is  more  or  less  unreliable  and  the  "timing" 
or  opening  and  closing  of  the  valves  is  uncertain. 
The  sliding  valves  are  positively  controlled  through- 
out their  entire  motion  and  no  change  in  timing 
and  consequent  loss  of  power  at  high  speeds  is  pos- 
sible. At  high  engine  speeds  the  travel  of  the  exhaust 
and  inlet  gases  is  exceedingly  fast  and  many  restric- 
tions to  their  passage  to  and  from  the  combustion 
chamber  results  in  a  loss  of  power.  An  unrestricted 
passage  for  these  gases  is  not  possible  with  the 
poppet  valve  arrangement.  With  the  sleeve  valve, 
however,  an  ideally  shaped  combustion  chamber  is 
formed  and  the  passages  to  and  from  this  chamber 
through  the  ports  in  the  sleeves  are  absolutely  direct. 
No  style  of  valve  mechanism  has  yet  been  invented 
which  produces  as  accurate  and  efficient  functioning 
as  that  of  the  present  motor. 


68  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


INSTRUCTIONS  FOR  OPERATING  AN 
AUTOMOBILE. 

The  first  thing  the  novice  should  do  before  at- 
tempting to  drive  an  automobile  is  to  familiarize 
himself  with  the  different  parts  of  the  car  he  is  to 
drive.  Before  starting  the  engine  see  that  the  gas- 
oline tank  is  full;  also  see  that  the  radiator  has 
water  in  it  and  the  oil  tank  is  full.  See  that  the 
batteries  are  in  good  condition,  and  charged  to 
proper  point  of  efficiency.  Assuming  now  you  are" 
ready  to  start  the  engine,  first  see  that  the  gear 
shifting  lever  is  in  a  neutral,  or  idle,  position  (see 
Fig.  19),  and  the  hand  brake  is  set.  On  most  cars 
this  lever  will  also  throw  the  clutch  out,  so  that  there 
is  no  connection  between  the  engine  and  driving 
mechanism.  Insert  switch  plug,  in  center  of  coil  box 
(which  is  generally  on  the  dash),  and  throw  the 
switch  on  the  battery  side,  which  brings  the  battery 
into  action.  See  Fig.  25. 

If  the  car  is  equipped  with  a  magneto,  then  the 
other  side  of  the  switch  would  bring  the  magneto 
into  action.  With  some  magnetos  you  can  start  the 
engine  by  cranking,  but  others  you  cannot.  As- 
suming you  are  starting  on  the  battery,  with  the 
switch  on  that  side,  make  sure  the  spark  lever  is  set 
to  the  full  retard  position  (see  Fig.  16),  andjfche 
throttle  is  open  about  a  quarter  way  (see  Fig.  16). 
Push  in  the  starting  crank  at  its  lowest  point,  and 
with  one  hand  give  crank  a  quick  upward  pull.  If 
the  engine  does  not  start  at  once  crank  it  several 
times ;  if  the  engine  is  cold  or  has  been  standing 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  69 

any  length  of  time  it  may  be  necessary  to  flood  the 
carburetor  or  put  a  little  gasoline  into  the  cylinders 
through  the  relief  cocks.  After  JOU  have  the  en- 
gine started,  axjvance  the  spark  half  wav,  and  regu- 
late the  throttle  so  that  the  engine  does  not  race. 
It  would  be  better  before  taking  the  car  out  to  jack 
the  rear  wheels  up  and  take  your  seat  behind  the 
steering  wheel  and  practice  shifting  the  gears  to 
their  different  positions  (see  Fig.  2)  ;  also  famil- 
iarize yourself  with  the  clutch  and  brake  pedals, 
spark  and  throttle  levers  and  the  hand  brake,  that 
you  may  be  able  to  use  the  proper  one  without  the 
least  hesitation  or  doubt.  Do  this  until  you  feel 
that  you  are  competent  to  take  the  car  out.  Hav- 
ing taken  your  seat  behind  the  steering  wheel,  re- 
lease the  emergency,  or  hand,  brake.  (If  the  car 
has  a  planetary  transmission,  throw  the  low  speed 
in  first,  speeding  the  engine  up  at  the  same  time, 
having  the  car  moving  fairly  well;  then  throw  into 
high  speed./  On  a  car  that  has  a  sliding  gear  trans- 
mission you  first  press  down  on  the  clutch  pedal  with 
your  foot,  and  place  the  shifting  lever  in  the  notch 
for  low  or  first  speed  gear  (see  Fig.  19);  let  the 
clutch  pedal  up  gently,  which  allows  the  clutch  to 
engage,  and  the  car  will  move  forward;  then  push 
down  on  clutch  with  foot,  and  put  the  shifting  lever 
in  the  next  notch,  or  second  speed  gear,  and  let 
the  clutch  up  in  the  same  way  as  shifting  to  first 
speed  gear.  You  keep  on  shifting  in  this  manner 
until  you  have  the  lever  in  the  last  notch,  or  high 
speed  gear.  With  the  shifting  lever  in  the  high 
speed  notch  the  changes  of  speed  then  are  entirely 
controlled  by  the  throttle  and  spark  levers,  which 
levers  are  placed  on  the  steering  post  or  over  the 
steering  wheel,  as  shown  in  Fig.  16,  at  the  maximum 


70  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

speed  the  spark  should  be  advanced  to  its  maximum 
point  and  the  throttle  should  be  wide  open. 

When  you  desire  to  run  at  the  lowest  speed,  when 
driving  with  the  high  speed  gear  in,  the  spark  lever 
should  be  advanced  a  quarter  to  half  way,  and  the 
throttle  should  be  closed  as  much  as  possible,  and 
still  allow  gas  enough  to  be  fed  to  the  engine  to  turn 
it  over.  The  operation  of  the  spark  and  throttle 
levers  you  will  find  will  be  governed  by  conditions, 
and  the  use  of  them  is  nothing  more  than  a  matter 
of  practice.  If  you  have  the  spark  advanced  too 
far  it  will  cause  a  pound  or  knock  in  the  engine,  be- 
cause the  explosion  has  taken  place  before  the  pis- 
ton has  completed  its  upward  stroke.  The  move- 
ment of  contact  at  the  commutator,  and  the  flashing 
of  the  spark  at  the  spark  plug,  which  is  screwed  into 
the  cylinder,  are  practically  instantaneous.  But 
there  is  an  appreciable  time  between  the  spark  and 
the  time  the  gas  becomes  completely  ignited.  When 
you  have  the  engine  running  at  a  high  rate  of  speed 
to  get  the  best  results  the  spark  should  take  place 
when  the  piston  is  on  its  way  up,  but  the  moment 
the  engine  starts  to  knock  retard  the  spark  until 
the  noise  stops.  To  reverse  the  car,  bring  it  to  a 
full  stop  first,  push  down  on  the  clutch  pedal  and 
put  the  shifting  lever  in  the  notch  for  the  reverse, 
then  let  the  clutch  in  gently  and  the  car  will  move 
backward.  To  stop  the  car,  close  the  throttle,  push 
down  on  the  clutch  pedal,  then  apply  the  foot  brake. 
If  it  is  necessary  to  stop  suddenly  you  can  also 
apply  the  hand  brake,  but  never  stop  suddenly  un- 
less it  is  necessary,  for  if  the  brakes  are  applied 
to  the  maximum  they  will  lock  the  wheels,  which  is 
very  injurious  to  the  tires.  After  the  car  has  come 
to  a  stop  place  the  shifting  lever  in  a  neutral  or  idle 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  71 

position  and  put  the  hand  brake  on.  You  could 
now  leave  the  car  if  you  wished  to,  with  the  engine 
still  running.  There  would  be  no  danger  of  it  start- 
ing off  itself  if  these  directions  are  carried  out.  If 
you  wish  to  stop  the  engine,  throw  the  switch  off, 
which  is  on  the  center  of  the  coil  box,  and  the  engine 
will  come  to  a  stop. 

In  climbing  a  hill  that  cannot  be  negotiated  on 
the  high  speed  gear  you  would  have  to  change  to 
a  lower  gear.  A  good  plan  in_  climjbing..ja. JiilL  is  to 
speed  the  engine  up  before  you  reach  the  bottom, 
and  as  the  engine  slows  up,  owing  to  the  added  load, 
and  if  the  engine  begins  to  knock  or  poundx  retarp! 
the  spark.  If  you  see  the  engine  is  running  too 
slow  and  is  apt  to  stop,  then  you  will  have  to  shift 
to  a  lower  gear.  When  it  becomes  necessary  to 
change  gears  allow  the  speed  of  the  car  to  come 
down  to  that  of  the  engine.  Never  shift  the  gears 
when  the  engine  is  at  top  speed.  Of  course,  if  the 
car  will  not  climb  the  hill  on  that  gear  then  shift  to 
the  next  lowest,  and  so  on,  until  you  see  what  gear 
you  will  need.  This  will  only  be  found  necessary 
on  the  very  steepest  hills.  After  sufficient  practice 
has  been  had  the  driver  will  be  able  to  shift  gears  at 
will  on  any  hill.  Jtn^descejidin^jiJiill  put  the  shift- 
ing lever  in  the  notefr  far  hiflii  gr^ar  anrl  pfpfifi  ^r>wn 

on  the  clutch  pedal?  with  yoi|r  foot,  which  discon- 
nects the  engine  from  the  driving  mechanism,  which 
will  allow  the  car  to  coast.  As  the  car  reaches  the 
bottom  of  the  hill  do  not  let  the  clutch  in  until  the 
car  and  engine  are  running  at  the  same  speed.  An- 
other way  in  descending  a  hill  which  will  also  utilize 
the  engine  as  an  additional  brake,  is  to  put  the  \tfw 
gear  in  befr^f  H^rp^'^gj  *^PTI  let,  thp  clutch  m; 
as  the  car  starts  down  throw  off  the  switch.  This 


72  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

will  hold  the  car  back  considerably.  If  it  is  neces- 
sary to  use  the  brake  also  you  can  do  it  without  re- 
leasing the  clutch  while  running  with  the  switch  off. 
I  do  not  advise  descending  a  hill  in  this  manner 
unless  the  hill  is  very  steep  and  you  feel  that  your 
brakes  may  not  hold  the  car. 

Learning  to  steer  an  automobile  is  nothing  more 
than  a  matter  of  practice.  When  you  first  take  the 
car  out  it  would  be  better  to  get  on  a  road  or  street 
where  there  is  very  little  traffic.  Start  off  on  first 
gear  until  you  see  that  you  have  the  car  running 
straight,  then  change  to  the  next  gear,  as  already 
described,  until  you  get  the  lever  in  the  notch  for 
high  gear.  Never  take  your  eyes  off  the  road  to 
look  at  the  shifting  lever  while  doing  so,  as  you  will 
lose  control  of  the  car  and  possibly  run  into  the  curb 
or  another  vehicle.  This  may  seem  simple,  but  it 
has  been  the  cause  of  a  great  many  accidents.  That 
is  the  reason  I  advise  before  taking  the  car  out  to 
jack  the  rear  wheels  up  and  practice  shifting  the 
lever  to  its  different  positions.  It  will  not  take  long 
to  learn  shifting  to  the  different  positions  without 
looking  at  them.  In  steering  an  automobile,  and 
you  want  to  turn  to  the  right  you  turn  the  wheel  to 
the  right;  or  if  you  wish  to  turn  to  the  left  you 
turn  the  wheel  to  the  left,  but  do  not  jerk  the  wheel 
suddenly ;  move  it  gradually.  Practice  steering  on 
a  straight  road  or  street  before  attempting  to  turn 
corners,  and  always  take  them  very  slowly.  Do  not 
practice  fast  driving  until  you  feel  sure  you  are 
competent  to  control  the  car,  as  it  may  be  disas- 
trous. Great  care  should  be  taken  in  driving  over 
an  asphalt  street  that  is  wet.  It  is  all  right  when 
driving  straight  ahead,  but  in  making  a  turn  or  com- 
ing to  a  stop  is  where  you  will  have  to  be  very 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  73 

careful,  as  the  wheels  are  apt  to  skid  or  slide.  It  is 
well  to  run  very  slow  when  the  streets  are  in  this 
condition.  In  coming  to  a  stop  use  the  brakes  spar- 
ingly and  apply  as  gradually  as  possible.  If  they 
are  applied  suddenly  it  will  cause  the  car  to  turn 
completely  around  and  may  cause  a  collision.  In 
turning  a  corner  when  the  streets  are  wet  you  will 
have  to  be  very  careful.  Never  follow  another  fast- 
moving  vehicle  in  a  cloud  of  dust  or  try  to  pass  it 
unless  the  view  is  unobstructed,  as  some  one  may 
be  coming  from  the  opposite  direction.  Never  cut 
a  corner,  but  always  keep  to  the  right  of  the  road 
and  blow  the  horn;  or  do  not  cross  intersecting 
roads  without  slowing  down  and  blowing  the  horn. 
Do  not  pass  a  trolley  car  or  another  vehicle  that  is 
standing  still  without  slowing  up  or  coming  to  a 
stop  and  giving  warning.  If  compelled  to  pass 
them,  keep  your  car  under  control  and  be  ready  to 
stop  instantly ,  as  some  one  may  walk  out  in  front 
of  you.  Do  not  think  that  all  that  is  necessary  to 
do  is  to  blow  the  horn  to  warn  others;  slow  down 
to  see  if  they  hear  you.  They  may  be  deaf  or 
frightened,  and  may  do  the  wrong  thing.  Bear  in 
mind  that  the  foot  traveler,  even  if  he  is  not  on  a 
crosswalk,  has  the  right  to  use  the  street,  and  is 
not  obliged  to  get  out  of  your  way.  Your  full  duty 
is  not  performed  when  you  blow  your  horn  or  other 
device  for  signaling.  It  is  your  legal  duty  to  avoid 
touching  the  pedestrian.  This  sometimes  can  only 
be  accomplished,  particularly  if  the  pedestrian  is 
old  or  infirm,  or  a  child,  by  bringing  your  car  to  a 
full  stop.  Whenever  there  is  a  doubt  as  regards 
the  right  of  way,  let  the  other  fellow  have  it.  Never 
run  an  automobile  after  taking  a  drink  of  any  al- 
coholic beverage;  it  is  more  than  unjust  to  others; 


74  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

it  is  a  crime.  Always  keep  your  brain  and  heart  at 
work  for  the  good  of  others  and  so  of  your  own. 
If  you  lack  either  brains  or  heart  it  is  a  positive 
crime  against  humanity  for  you  to  drive  an  auto- 
mobile. 

RIGHT  AND  WRONG  WAYS  OF  DRIVING 
AUTOMOBILES. 

The  mere  matter  of  driving  an  automobile  in  the 
sense  of  getting  it  to  a  given  point  and  back  again 
without  an  accident  is  a  comparatively  easy  and 
simple  accomplishment,  even  to  a  beginner,  with 
but  little  practice.  But,  according  to  the  automo- 
bile dealer  and  repairer,  there  is  a  right  and  a 
wrong  way,  an  easy  and  awkward  way,  and  some- 
times a  safe  and  dangerous  way  of  Carrying  out  a 
number  of  necessary  operations.  These  ways, 
which  are  the  little  tricks  of  the  trade,  distinguishing 
a  really  good  driver  from  an  amateur,  are  explained 
in  the  drawings.  Fig.  1,  for  instance,  shows  a 
fierceness  of  grip  on  the  gear  lever  which  is  faulty 
with  many  drivers.  Unless  there  is  some  defect  in 
the  mechanism  actuated  by  the  movement  of  the 
lever,  making  the  latter  excessively  stiff  to  operate, 
such  a  grip  is  not  only  unnecessary,  but  a  distinct 
disadvantage,  tending  to  encourage  undue  rough- 
ness and  force  in  changing  the  gear. 

The  correct  handling  of  the  lever  is  shown  in  Figs. 
2  and  3.  It  gives  all  the  grip  and  certainty  of  move- 
ment that  is  required,  and  there  is  no  implied  neces- 
sity for  great  force,  as  in  Fig.  1.  Fig.  2  shows 
the  correct  hold  for  the  movement,  and  Fig.  3  shows 
the  finish  of  the  movement,  or  ready  for  the  back- 
ward pull.  Fig.  4  shows  an  alternate  method  of 
holding  the  lever  for  a  movement  back  and  outwardly 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  75 

across  the  gate  that  is  particularly  suitable  for 
some  gears,  especially  when  the  sliding  shaft  of  the 
lever  is  liable  to  bind  in  crossing  the  gate.  Figs. 
5  and  6  show  two  ways  of  holding  the  steering  wheel, 
the  former  being  considered  awkward,  while  the  lat- 
ter is  far  more  natural  and  comfortable.  Also, 
when  the  wheel  is  held  in  such  a  manner  as  shown 
in  Fig.  6,  and  it  becomes  necessary  to  reach  for 
the  lever  when  it  is  in  its  forward  position,  there  is 
no  tendency  for  the  movement  of  the  body  to  cause 
a  pressure  of  the  left  hand  on  the  wheel  that  might 
turn  it  and  swerve  the  automobile  from  its  path. 
Fig.  7  defines  a  position  of  the  foot  that  is  not  to  be 
recommended  when  the  clutch  is  "in"  and  the  brake 
"off."  The' heel,  if  not  the  whole  of  the  foot,  should 
be  kept  firmly  on  the  floorboard,  for,  by  resting  the 
weight  of  the  foot  on  the  clutch  pedal,  a  large 
amount  of  unnecessary  friction  and  wear  takes  place 
at  the  clutch  fork.  Also  there  is  a  liability  that  the 
clutch  may  sooner  or  later  be  caused  to  slip. 

Figs.  8  and  9  show  awkward  and  ungraceful  po- 
sitions in  "seats."  The  former,  apparently  a  ner- 
vous and  uncomfortable  seat,  is  frequently  adopted 
by  beginners,  while  the  latter  shows  an  inclination 
to  carelessness  much  to  be  decried.  Fig.  10  shows 
a  seat  that  is  not  awkward  and  stiff,  nor  careless,  but 
it  is  a  comfortable  seat  that  adds  to  certainty  of 
proper  manipulation  of  steering  gear  and  controls. 

TRANSMISSION. 

At  Fig.  19  is  shown  the  selective  type  of  trans- 
mission as  used  on  the  Peerless  cars.  The  speed  of 
the  Peerless  is  regulated  by  a  system  of  shifting 
gears  which  run  on  the  main  shaft  and  a  counter 
shaft,  and  gives  the  operator  four  speeds  forward 


76  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

and  one  reverse.  These  gears  are  located  in  the 
transmission  case  just  back  of  the  clutch,  and  are 
controlled  by  the  shifting  lever  at  the  side  of  the 
car.  You  will  see  from  the  diagram  at  Fig  19  that 
this  lever  can  be  thrown  into  five  notches  for  the  five 
speeds.  When  the  lever  is  in  neutral  position  be- 
tween the  notches  none  of  the  gears  are  meshed  and 
the  motor  runs  free.  In  the  first  speed  the  driving 
is  through  counter-shaft  pinion,  counter-shaft  gear, 
first  speed  pinion  and  first  speed  gear.  Second 
speed  is  through  counter-shaft  pinion,  counter-shaft 
gear,  second  speed  pinion  and  second  speed  gear, 
and  third  speed  is  through  counter-shaft  pinion, 
counter-shaft  gear,  third  speed  pinion  and  third 
speed  gear.  High  speed  is  through  direct  drive  gear 
meshing  internally  with  third  speed  gear,  thus  mak- 
ing a  direct  drive.  For  the  reverse  the  driving  is 
through  the  counter-shaft  pinion,  counter-shaft  gear, 
first  speed  pinion  and  reverse  idler  gear  that  re- 
verses first  speed  gear. 

WHY  THE   MOTOR  STOPS. 

If  the  motor  should  stop  the  same  as  when  the 
switch  is  thrown  off,  'the  trouble  may  be  caused  by 
a  loose  or  broken  wire,  fouled  spark  plugs,  short 
circuit,  broken  or  loose  parts  on  circuit  breaker  or 
igniter,  switch  plug  loose  or  not  in  position,  switch 
off  or  not  making  a  contact,  igniter  fingers  not 
snapping  or  coming  together.  If  the  motor  should 
miss  fire  before  stopping,  the  trouble  then  would 
be  either  from  a  weak  battery,  short  circuit,  vibra- 
tors out  of  adjustment,  loose  connections,  springs  on 
igniter  fingers  weak.  If  the  stop  is  preceded  by  back 
firing  in  the  carburetor,  the  trouble  then  would  be 
from  an  empty  gasoline  tank,  gasoline  pipe  stopped 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  77 

up,  or  gasoline  cock  shut  off,  dirt  in  carburetor, 
water  in  gasoline.  If  the  car  seems  to  drag  before 
stopping  it  may  be  from  insufficient  lubrication  caus- 
ing some  part  to  get  hot  and  bind,  probably  the 
bearings  or  pistons,  the  brakes  may  not  be  released, 
or  the  bearings  in  the  wheels  may  have  worked  tight 
or  dry. 

The  above  mentioned  troubles  one  will  generally 
meet  with  in  operating  an  automobile.  If  the  time 
is  taken  to  study  the  above  subjects,  any  one  would 
soon  be  able  to  tell  just  what  the  trouble  is  the 
moment  the  motor  stops.  In  case  one  should  break 
a  crankshaft,  piston,  connecting  rod,  camshaft,  cam, 
gears,  shaft,  differential  or  any  other  part,  they 
will  in  nearly  every  instance  show  for  themself  with- 
out much  trouble  in  hunting  them. 

HOW  TO  ADJUST  THE  SPARK  COIL. 

Ignition  batteries  are  capable  of  furnishing  a 
definite  quantity  of  electrical  energy,  according  to 
the  National  Carbon  Company.  This  capacity  is 
sufficient  to  run  a  motor  car  several  thousand  miles, 
if  properly  used.  This  economy  of  current  depends 
on  whether  or  not  the  sparking  apparatus  is  of 
good  design,  and  if  the  coil  is  properly  adjusted. 
The  importance  of  the  latter  is  not  sufficiently  recog- 
nized by  operators  of  motor  cars  and  power  boats. 
An  idea  of  its  importance  may  be  obtained  from  the 
fact  that  a  battery  capable  of  running  an  automo- 
bile several  thousand  miles  with  properly  adjusted 
coils  may  not  be  capable  of  running  even  several 
hundred  miles  with  poorly  adjusted  coils.  By  ob- 
serving the  following  rules  the  tension  of  the  vibrator 
on  the  spark  coils  may  be  adjusted  to  the  minimum 


78  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

rate  of  consumption  of  battery  energy  consistent  to 
the  proper  operation  of  the  engine: 

(1)  Make  certain  that  the  contacts  on  the  spark 
coil  are  clean  and  even,  and  not  too  much  pitted. 
(If  contact  points  become  deeply  pitted  or  rough 
they  should  be  smoothed  down  by  using  a  fine  file.) 

(2)  See  that  spark  plugs  are  clean  and  free  from 
short  circuits. 

(3)  While   the   engine   is   not   running,   turn   the 
crank  until  one  of  the  spark  coil  units  is  thrown  into 
position  in  the  battery  circuit  and  its  vibrator  set 
in  motion. 

Adjusting  Scraw- 

Hut ^gHgpl  Contact  Points 

Vibrator 


Tig.  25.- A  Conventional  Sketch' of  Single  Jump  Spark  Coil 

(4)  Lessen  the  tension  on  the  vibrator  by  means 
of  the  adjusting  screw  (see  Fig.  £5)  until  the  con- 
tacts are  separated  and  the  vibrator  ceases  to  move ; 
then  increase  the  tension  just  enough  to  cause  the 
vibrator  to  be  set  in  motion  again.     Secure  the  ad- 
justing screw. 

(5)  Proceeding  in  like  manner,   adjust  the  ten- 
sion of  the  vibrator  of  each  of  the  other  spark  coils 
to  the  minimum  consumption  of  battery  energy. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  79 

(6)  Crank  the  engine.  If  engine  refuses  to  run, 
or  if  it  runs  in  an  irregular  manner,  increase  the  ten- 
sion on  each  vibrator  by  giving  the  adjusting  screw 
a  very  slight  turn  downward. 


THE  CARBURETOR. 

At  Fig.  15  is  shown  a  Peerless  carburetor.  The 
information  herein  given  we  hope  will  make  plain 
many  features  that  the  inexperienced  find  difficult  to 
understand.  At  Fig.  16  is  shown  the  throttle  con- 
trol. The  gravity  system  of  gasoline  supply  from 
the  tank  to  the  carburetor  is  used  on  Models  27  and 
28  of  the  Peerless  cars.  The  gravity  system  re- 
quires no  watching  or  maintenance  of  air  pressure 
by  means  of  a  hand  pump  or  other  device,  and  the 
motor  may  be  started  without  any  reference  to  the 
length  of  time  that  may  have  intervened  since  it 
was  last  stopped.  A  second  or  auxiliary  tank  is 
built  in  the  top  of  the  main  gasoline  supply  tank. 
This  auxiliary  tank  may  be  brought  into  use  at  a 
moment's  notice  by  turning  the  handle  of  the  two- 
way  valve  located  at  the  base  of  the  fall-board 
within  convenient  reach.  The  chief  purpose  of  the 
auxiliary  tank  is  for  use  in  emergencies.  The  gas- 
oline filter  is  located  between  the  main  gasoline  tank 
and  the  carburetor.  In  case  it  is  desired  to  drain 
and  clean  this  filter,  the  valve  handle  regulating  the 
flow  of  gasoline  from  tanks  is  turned  to  position 
"off"  and  the  shut-off  valve  between  the  filter  and  the 
carburetor  is  closed.  Remove  the  sediment  tube  cap 
located  at  the  base  of  the  sediment  tube  and  allow  a 
little  gasoline  to  flow  from  the  tank.  It  takes  very 
little  gasoline  to  thoroughly  clean  the  filter  and  sed- 
iment tube.  To  drain  the  carburetor,  shut  off  the 


80  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

gasoline  supply  under  the  gasoline  tank  and  drain 
through  the  filter,  as  described  above. 

Entering  the  carburetor,  the  gasoline  first  passes 
through  the  float  chamber,  where  its  level  is  auto- 
matically regulated  by  the  float.  As  this  float  rises 
it  actuates  the  two  balance  levers  at  the  top  of  the 
chamber  and  pushes  down  the  plunger  in  the  cen- 
ter, thus  closing  the  needle  valve  gasoline  inlet  at  the 
bottom.  Connected  with  the  float  chamber  is  the 
spray  nozzle,  the  tip  of  which  is  in  the  center  of  a 
surrounding  air  passage,  one  end  of  which  com- 
municates with  the  outer  air,  the  other  end  with  the 
engine  cylinders.  The  air  is  sucked  through  a  brass 
screen  of  fine  mesh,  past  a  wing  valve  to  the  spray- 
ing throat  by  the  powerful  suction  produced  by  the 
movement  of  the  close-fitting  pistons  in  the  engine 
cylinders.  Since  the  nozzle  tip  is  located  in  the  con- 
stricted area  of  the  spraying  throat  the  gasoline  is 
"sucked  out"  and  readily  vaporized  by  the  strong 
rush  of  air.  The  amount  of  air  is  regulated  by  the 
small  lever  on  the  dash,  which  controls  the  wing 
valve  to  the  main  air  supply.  Moving  this  lever  to 
the  left  closes  the  valve  and  thereby  increases  the 
richness  of  the  mixture.  As  the  air  enters  tne  sur- 
rounding air  passages  and  passes  the  nozzle  it  sucks 
up  a  small  quantity  of  gasoline,  breaking  it  into  a 
fine  spray  of  gaseous  mixture  in  the  mixing  cham- 
ber. This  mixture  is  carried  from  the  carburetor 
to  the  combustion  chambers  of  the  motor  through 
the  "Y"  inlet  manifold  shown  in  the  drawing. 

The  quantity  of  the  gasoline  is  automatically  reg- 
ulated. As  the  motor  increases  its  speed,  there  is  a 
corresponding  increase  in  the  velocity  of  the  inrush- 
ing  air  and  a  greater  quantity  of  the  mixture  is 
drawn  into  the  motor.  At  high  speed  the  motor  re- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  81 

quires  a  greater  proportion  of  air  than  when  run- 
ning at  low  speed,  and  for  this  reason  an  auxiliary 
air  inlet  is  provided,  which  is  located  at  the  extreme 
top  of  the  carburetor.  When  the  motor  is  running 
at  high  speed  and  the  regular  supply  is  sufficient 
to  fill  the  vacuum  created  in  the  cylinders  and  inlet 
pipes,  the  force  of  this  vacuum  automatically  opens 
the  valve  of  the  auxiliary  air  inlet. 

A  single  seated  throttle  operating  vertically  is  lo- 
cated at  the  upper  extremity  oXthe  mixing  cham- 
ber. The  gas  is  free  to  move^lp  or  down  through 
the  throttle,  because^  being  iroJlowX;here  is  nothing 
to  obstruct  its  passage7~"~-Tn/OBrejK>  to  remove  the 
throttle  it  is  made  to  slide  in/K^eeve,  which  may  be 
unscrewed  from  the  carburetor  body.  The  valve  is 
operated  by  a  throttle  stem,  through  a  system  of 
levers  and  rods  from  the  throttle  knob  on  the  steer- 
ing wheel,  also  by  the  accelerator  pedal.  Besides 
these,  the  speed  is  controlled  by  the  centrifugal  gov- 
ernor. 

If  the  muffler  gives  out  a  strong  gasoline  odor  it 
shows  that  the  mixture  is  too  rich,  and  the  air  lever 
on  the  dash  yhftlllfj  ^T  rajpilrttrrl  to  give  the  car- 
buretor  more  air.  Too  rich  a  mixture  will  cause  an 
engine  to  "miss"  explosions,  because  of  sooty  or 
"foul"  spark  plugs.  Too  weak  a  mixture  will  make 
it  miss  because  of  the  lack  of  gasoline  for  combus- 
tion. A  weak  mixture  may  be  caused  by  wrong  ad- 
justment of  the  air  lever  on  the  dash  or  by  dirt  in 
the  carburetor  or  supply  pipe.  Try  regulating  the 
air  lever,  and  if  this  is  not  effective,  drain  the  car- 
buretor in  the  way  we  have  described.  Occasionally 
it  may  happen  that  dirt  will  get  into  the  end  of  the 
nozzle,  but  this  can  be  very  easily  taken  out  by  re- 


82  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

moving  the  plug  below  it  and  then  unscrewing  the 
spray  nozzle. 

In  starting  your  car,  especially  when  it  has  been 
standing  for  some  time,  so  that  the  motor  is  cold, 
it  may  be  found  necessary,  on  account  of  the  lack 
of  air  current  passing  through  the  mixing  chamber, 
to  make  the  gasoline  overflow  from  the  nozzle  by 
taking  off  the  small  brass  cap  on  cover  of  float 
chamber  and  raising  the  small  brass  rod.  Should 
this  not  prove  effective  close  the  air  valve  by  means 
of  the  lever  on  the  dash.  In  this  way  there  will  be 
nothing  but  gasoline  vapor  drawn  into  the  cylinders. 

The  tension  of  the  conical  valve  spring  on  the 
auxiliary  air  inlet  is  regulated  by  the  two  locknuts 
immediately  above  the  spring.  The  lift  of  the 
auxiliary  air  valve  is  regulated  by  the  two  locknuts 
inside  the  spring.  This  tension  and  lift  of  air  valve 
may  need  regulating  after  a  time,  how  much  must 
be  determined  by  experience.  Other  than  the  adjust- 
ments we  have  mentioned,  the  carburetor  should  not 
be  touched,  as  it  is  thoroughly  adjusted  before  leav- 
ing the  factory. 

TIMING  THE  SPARK  OF  A  MAGNETO. 

To  obtain  proper  ignition  it  is  evident  that  the 
sparking  time  must  coincide  with  that  position  of 
the  armature  at  which  there  will  be  the  greatest 
volume  of  electrical  energy  in  the  windings,  and  the 
time  of  break  between  the  points  must  be  synchro- 
nous with  the  instant  that  the  piston  is  at  top  com- 
pression stroke,  or  its  firing  point,  with  the  engine 
at  normal  speed.  In  motor  car  engines  the  firing 
point  is  variable,  though  generally  the  spark  will 
take  place  ahead  of  center,  from  one-quarter  to 
three-quarters  of  an  inch,  depending  upon  the  stroke 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


of  the  piston.  The  average  will  be  three-eighths  to 
one-half  inch.  When  the  proper  firing  point  is 
known  the  crankshaft  is  revolved  until  the  piston  in 
the  cylinder  about  to  fire  is  in  position,  which  can 
best  be  determined  by  inserting  a  piece  of  wire 
through  a  compression  cock  or  spark  plug  opening, 
as  shown  at  Fig.  12. 


Firing  Order, 1-2-4-3 


FIG.    12-JMAQNfcTO  TIMING  DIAGRAM 


84  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

The  movement  of  this  will  correspond  to  the  travel 
of  the  piston.  With  the  spark  lever  fully  advanced 
and  the  contact  breaker  case  at  maximum  advance 
position,  the  magneto  armature  is  revolved  by  hand 
till  the  contact  points  are  just  about  to  separate, 
at  which  point  the  driving  gear  of  the  armature 
should  be  meshed  with  that  of  the  camshaft.  The 
distributor  is  driven  by  gearing  integral  with  the 
magneto  and  is  assumedly  properly  timed  at  the 
factory.  If  the  engine  is  a  multiple-cylinder  type 
the  distributor  cover  is  removed  and  the  segment 
with  which  the  distributor  arm  is  in  contact  is  wired 
to  the  plug  in  the  cylinder  about  to  fire.  The  re- 
maining contacts  are  then  wired  to  the  cylinders  in 
the  order  that  they  fire,  which  order  varies  in  dif- 
ferent machines.  At  this  time  the  armature  driving 
gear  is  firmly  attached  to  the  shaft  by  pins,  key  or 
is  forced  on  a  taper  with  a  nut.  The  firing  order 
of  the  system  shown  is  1,  2,  4,  3,  and  the  remaining 
cylinders  are  coupled  in  the  order  named.  The 
direction  of  distributer  brush  rotation,  if  driven  by 
gears,  is  opposite  to  that  of  the  magneto  armature, 
though  in  some  forms  it  is  driven  directly  from  an 
extension  of  the  armature  shaft  and  obviously  turns 
at  the  same  speed  and  in  the  same  direction.  If  one 
cylinder  is  properly  timed,  and  the  others  are  coupled 
in  proper  firing  order,  they  will  be  timed  also.  The 
positions  of  the  armature,  distributer  brush,  contact 
breaker  cam  and  piston,  are  easily  ascertained  by 
inspection  of  the  drawing.  The  dotted  line  above 
the  piston  indicates  the  end  of  the  stroke  and  the 
firing  position  under  normal  conditions  ;  for  instance, 
when  the  engine  is  running  at  moderate  speed.  The 
contact  breaker  box  may  be  rocked  back  and  forth 
to  vary  the  point  of  breaking  contact,  and  conse- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


Timing  Hijh-Tetaion  Ignition  Britain— Arr»nx«m«nt  of  ftp  to  im  Cylinder  1  and  Timer.  wittv 
Bpcrte  Uyer  in  lUxlaam.  AA^nce  Pbsitien;  W-'riny  to  Other  Cylinderi  M  AU  4-Cylinder  ' 
TTHiaaifil  Firinr  l-J-4-8. 


86  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

quently  the  time  spark  will  take  place  in  the  cylinder. 
If  the  timing  is  correct  the  spark  will  occur  in  the 
cylinder  approximately  at  center  when  the  contact 
breaker  case  is  at  central  position,  and  a  little  after 
the  piston  has  left  top  center  when  the  spark  lever 
is  fully  retarded. 

TIMING  THE   SPARK-BATTERY   IGNITION. 

Timing  the  spark  is  easily  accomplished  after  the 
parts  are  installed  and  properly  coupled  by  varying 
the  position  of  the  rotating  brush  in  the  timing 
device,  having  it  make  contact  with  the  insulated 
segment  at  the  time  that  the  piston  in  the  cylinder 
to  be  fired  is  at  ignition  point.  This  can  be  done 
in  several  ways,  one  of  these  being  shown  at  Fig. 
24.  The  spark  advance  lever  is  coupled  to  the  timer 
case  and  is  set  in  the  position  of  maximum  advance. 
The  piston  is  brought  up  on  its  compression  stroke 
until  about  one-half  inch  (on  an  average)  from  the 
top.  The  revolving  brush  or  cam  is  then  brought 
round  on  the  shaft  till  it  just  makes  contact  with 
the  stationary  electrode  and  is  then  securely  fastened 
to  its  shaft.  The  lever  is  then  moved  back  to  about 
the  middle  position  on  the  quadrant,  and  the  piston 
moved  up  to  the  end  of  the  compression  stroke.  If 
the  brush  again  makes  contact,  the  timing  is  correct. 
Another  method  is  the  reverse  of  the  process  de- 
scribed, the  spark  advance  lever  being  placed  in 
retard  or  late  position,  and  the  piston  brought  over 
the  top  compression  point  and  about  one-quarter 
inch  down  its  stroke.  The  revolving  brush  is  then 
set  to  make  contact  with  the  stationary  electrode. 
Then  again  one  may  place  the  spark  lever  in  center 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  87 

position  on  the  quadrant,  bring  the  piston  exactly 
on  the  top  compression  stroke  and  set  the  revolving 
cam  to  just  make  contact.  Any  of  these  methods 
are  satisfactory. 

If  the  engine  is  of  the  multiple  form,  one  can 
watch  the  inlet  valves  and  note  the  order  of  their 
operation;  this  will  give  the  firing  order.  A  com- 
mon method  of  igniting  four-cylinder  engines  is 
1,  2,  4,  3.  In  this  event  cylinder  1  is  timed  first, 
then  the  wire  leading  to  the  primary  terminal  of  the 
unit  of  the  coil  wrhose  secondary  lead  is  coupled  to 
cylinder  2  is  wired  to  the  next  stationary  contact  on 
the  timer  case  in  the  direction  of  cam  rotation.  The 
primary  wire  from  the  unit  coupled  to  No.  4  spark 
plug  is  connected  to  the  next  segment,  while  that  of 
the  unit  No.  3  is  attached  to  the  last  stationary 
contact  on  the  timer  case.  Advancing  the  spark, 
or  giving  it  a  greater  lead,  is  accomplished  by  so 
moving  the  stationary  contact  that  it  may  close  the 
circuit  earlier,  which  can  be  done  by  moving  the 
timer  case  in  a  direction  opposite  to  that  of  the 
movement  of  the  revolving  contact  member.  Moving 
the  timer  case  away  from  the  revolving  member  will 
retard  the  spark.  To  increase  the  speed  of  the 
engine  the  commutator  is  advanced  from  the  central 
position,  which  also  advances  the  time  of  contact,  so 
that  the  spark  will  take  place  earlier  in  the  cylinder 
and  give  it  sufficient  time  to  fire  the  charge  under 
the  new  conditions.  There  should  be  no  lost  motion 
in  the  rod  or  lever  controlling  the  timer  case  move- 
ments, and  care  should  be  taken  that  the  insulated 
contact  segments  are  away  from  metal  parts  at  all 
positions  of  the  timer  case. 


88 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

MULTIPLE   UNIT   COILS. 


When  coils  are  to  be  used  for  firing  multiple 
cylinder  motors,  there  are  two  general  systems  in 
vogue,  the  simplest  being  a  single  unit  coil  and  a 
distributing  device  to  direct  the  secondary  current 
to  the  plugs.  The  more  common  system  uses  a 
distinct  unit  for  each  cylinder  to  be  fired  and  a  com- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  89 

mutator  or  timer  which  distributes  the  primary  cur- 
rent to  each  coil  at  the  right  time  for  ignition  in 
the  cylinder  with  which  it  is  connected.  The  internal 
wiring  of  a  multiple  unit  coil  is  very  much  the  same 
as  though  the  same  number  of  box  coils  were  joined 
together  by  external  wiring.  At  Fig.  14  is  shown 
a  two-unit  coil  and  the  internal  wiring  at  A  and  B. 
A  four-unit  coil  and  internal  wiring  is  shown  at  C 
and  D.  As  will  be  evident,  but  one  primary  and 
one  secondary  lead  are  necessary  for  each  unit  when 
the  switch  is  attached.  If  the  switch  wrere  a  separate 
appliance  there  would  be  need  of  an  additional 
terminal,  to  which  would  be  coupled  the  connection, 
where  both  primary  and  secondary  coils  are  joined 
together,  of  all  the  units.  A  coil  for  double-cylinder 
ignition  will  have  six  terminals  if  an  attached  switch 
for  using  two  sets  of  batteries  is  attached,  and  five 
terminals  if  the  switch  is  a  separate  appliance,  such 
as  on  box  type  marine  coils.  A  four-unit  coil  will 
have  10  terminals  if  an  attached  switch  is  provided, 
and  nine  terminals  if  without  this  device.  The 
internal  wiring  scheme  of  other  forms  of  multiple 
unit  coils  is  the  same  as  those  shown,  save  that  more 
units  would  be  coupled  in  exactly  the  same  manner 
in  a  six-cylinder  coil,  and  there  would  be  14  terminals 
instead  of  six  or  10. 

ONE  CYLINDER  WIRING. 

To  simplify  wiring  systems  many  coil  manufac- 
turers have  placed  the  switch  on  the  coil  box,  espe- 
cially in  dash  type  coils.  This  location  of  the  switch 
makes  for  convenience  of  installation,  as  well  as  it 
being  easily  reached  when  it  is  desired  to  either 
make  or  interrupt  the  circuit.  The  diagrams  pre- 
sented at  Fig.  13  are  of  a  box  type  vibrator  coil 


90 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


with  a  separate  switch.  On  the  box  type  coil  shown 
at  A  there  are  four  terminals,  two  primary  and  two 
secondary.  One  primary  and  secondary  are  coupled 
and  a  wire  is  led  to  the  central  terminal  of  the  switch. 
From  the  batteries,  two  sets  being  employed,  wires 
are  run  to  either  side  of  the  switch  from  terminal 
of  the  same  polarity  on  either  battery  set.  The 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  91 


2S-KJNIT1ON  SYSTEM.  TWO-CYLINDER  OPPOSED  MOTOR 


92  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

remaining  terminals,  one  on  each  battery  set,  are 
coupled  and  grounded.  The  remaining  primary 
terminal  on  the  coil  box  is  attached  to  the  insulated 
contact  segment  of  the  timer,  while  the  remaining 
secondary  terminal  is  coupled  with  the  plug.  As 
will  be  evident,  the  purpose  of  the  switch  is  to  bring 
either  set  of  batteries  into  the  circuit  at  will.  When 
the  switch  arm  is  in  contact  with  Button  1,  the  dry 
cell  battery  is  used ;  when  on  Button  2  the  storage 
battery  is  furnishing  the  current. 

If  we  compare  the  diagram  B  with  A,  it  will  be 
seen  that  there  is  less  external  wiring,  as  the  coil  is 
of  the  dash  type  with  attached  switch,  connection 
of  the  switch  lever  to  the  primary  and  secondary 
leads,  joined  together,  being  made  inside  the  coil. 
This  coil  has  four  terminals  to  be  coupled  to  the 
outer  circuit,  one  secondary  that  is  joined  to  the 
plug,  one  primary  coupled  to  the  insulated  contact 
of  the  timer,  and  two  batteries  which  are  attached 
to  the  positive  poles  of  the  dry  and  storage  cell  sets. 

WIRING    DIAGRAMS    OF    MULTIPLE- 
CYLINDER   COILS. 

In  wiring  multiple-cylinder  coils  employed  for  four- 
or  six-cylinder  engines,  the  connections  are  very 
simple,  being  merely  a  repetition  of  those  employed 
for  the  simpler  single-  and  double-cylinder  forms. 
Any  coil  which  is  composed  of  a  number  of  units 
will  have  but  one  primary  and  one  secondary  ter- 
minal for  each  component,  and  if  without  an  attached 
switch,  an  extra  one  will  be  provided  for  attaching 
the  wire  from  the  central  button  or  lever  of  the 
separate  switch,  which  in  turn  can  be  utilized  to 
place  either  set  of  batteries  in  circuit  with  the  coil. 
Thus  a  four-cylinder  coil  has  either  9  or  10  ter- 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


93 


minals,  and  of  these  4  are  attached  directly  to  the 
timer  contacts,  four  to  the  plugs  and  the  remaining 
one  or  two,  as  the  case  may  be,  to  the  battery,  as 
shown  in  illustrations. 

A  six-cylinder  coil  will  have  six  units,  and  either 
13  or  14  terminals.  As  will  be  evident  from  diagram 
Fig.  30,  there  need  be  no  difficulty  presented  in 


94  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

making  proper  connections.  A  14-terminal  type 
with  attached  switch  is  shown  in  this  sketch.  Of 
these,  six  are  primary  terminals,  six  are  of  secondary 
or  plug  wires,  and  the  remaining  two  are  for  the 
wires  which  come  from  the  battery  sets.  The  plug 
wires  are  invariably  connected  in  rotation — that  is, 
wire  from  unit  one  to  plug  in  cylinder  one,  from 
unit  two  to  plug  two,  etc.  It  is  necessary  to  vary 
the  firing  order  because  it  is  never  as  regular  as 
this,  and  according  to  the  manner  in  which  the 
cylinders  operate,  so  the  wires  must  be  coupled  to 
the  timer  contacts.  For  example,  if  the  explosions 
occurred  as  1,  2,  3,  6,  5,  4,  the  primary  of  units 
1,  2  and  3  would  be  attached  one  after  the  other 
around  the  periphery  of  the  timer  in  the  direction  of 
the  rotation  of  the  center  contact  member  or  cam 
while  the  primary  terminal  of  unit  6  would  be 
coupled  to  the  next  one,  and  those  of  units  5  and  4 
in  that  order.  One  can  always  determine  the  direc- 
tion the  cam  revolves  by  turning  the  engine  over 
with  the  starting  handle,  and  the  order  of  cylinder 
firing  is  easily  ascertained  by  watching  the  order  of 
inlet  or  exhaust  valve  opening. 

THE  SECONDARY  DISTRIBUTER. 

At  Fig.  17  is  shown  typical  forms  of  this  device, 
which  will  serve  to  make  the  construction  clear.  It 
will  be  seen  that  a  secondary  distributer  consists  of 
a  primary  timer  to  which  is  attached  the  secondary 
distributer,  the  contacts  of  each  being  arranged  so 
that  contact  is  made  at  the  same  time,  this  to  insure 
absolute  accuracy  in  distribution.  It  is  usual  prac- 
tice to  make  contact  in  the  primary  circuit  as  many 
times  as  there  are  cylinders  to  be  fired,  and  to  attain 
this  end  the  terminals  of  the  contacts  are  usually 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


95 


bridged  by  a  strip  of  metal  connected  to  the  circuit, 
or  a  single  contact  is  provided,  there  being  as  many 
points  on  the  revolving  cam  member  as  there  are 
cylinders  to  be  fired.  Obviously  there  will  be  as 
many  contacts  and  interruptions  in  the  primary 
circuit  as  there  are  points  on  the  cam  or  terminals 
connected  together.  At  each  contact  or  completion 


J   H 


96  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

of  the  circuit  the  vibrator  will  operate  and  a  second- 
ary current  will  be  induced  in  the  coil.  When  the 
engine  is  running  at  high  speed  there  is  practically 
no  stop  to  the  vibrator,  because  its  inertia  tends  to 
keep  it  in  motion.  This  increases  the  motor  speed, 
as  there  is  no  time  lost  after  the  primary  coil  is 
energized  in  setting  the  vibrator  in  motion  and  lag 
is  eliminated.  The  secondary  current  is  led  to  the 
central  terminal,  which  contacts  with  the  distributing 
brush,  which  in  turn  sends  the  current  to  the  cylinder 
to  be  fired. 

The  form  shown  at  A  consists  of  a  composition 
casing,  having  one  primary  contact  at  the  lower  end 
and  as  many  secondary  contacts  at  the  upper  end  as 
there  are  cylinders  to  be  fired.  The  central  revolv- 
ing member  is  supplemented  by  a  fibre  block,  which 
carries  the  distributing  segment  at  the  top.  For 
each  cylinder  to  be  fired  a  roller  is  provided  in  the 
revolving  contact  member.  The  cover,  which  carries 
the  main  high  tension  lead,  is  easily  removable  for 
cleaning,  and  plenty  of  air  space  exists  between  the 
primary  and  secondary  portions  of  the  distributer, 
this  being  an  effectual  insulator  of  the  high-tension 
current.  The  secondary  terminal  screws  are  not  in 
actual  contact  with  the  distributing  arm,  being  sepa- 
rated by  an  air  gap  of  several  thousandths  of  an 
inch. 

There  is  a  certain  theoretical  advantage  attached 
to  the  use  of  a  spark  gap  in  the  secondary  circuit 
which  warrants  its  use.  The  objection  sometimes 
advanced  is  that  the  current  must  be  stronger  to 
jump  two  gaps  than  is  necessary  to  overcome  the 
resistance  of  one,  and  that  more  current  must  be 
made  to  flow  through  the  primary  coil,  the  amount 
of  which  would  be  materially  reduced  if  the  gap 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


97 


between  the  secondary  distribution  points  was 
eliminated.  The  appliance  shown  at  B  makes  a  posi- 
tive electrical  connection  at  the  secondary  distribu- 
tion points  as  well  as  at  the  primary  contacts.  This 
distributer  has  two  cams  and  two  sets  of  ball  con- 
tacts, one  being  for  the  timer,  the  other  for  the  dis- 
tributer, the  only  difference  being  that  in  the  latter 
there  is  but  one  ball  to  each  contact  and  that  the 


98  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

cam  is  well  insulated  from  the  shaft.  The  connec- 
tion is  made  and  the  circuit  closed  for  each  cylinder 
as  the  cam  passes  between  the  balls.  As  the  circuit 
is  closed  in  the  distributer  before  it  is  closed  in  the 
timer  and  broken  first  in  the  commutator,  there  is 
no  possibility  of  the  current  following  the  cam  when 
the  latter  leaves  the  contacts  in  the  distributer,  nor 
of  the  current  jumping  and  firing  the  charge  pre- 
maturely of  firing  the  wrong  cylinder.  The  primary 
contacts  are  all  wired  together  by  means  of  a  metal 
band,  a  single  joint  cam  being  employed. 

DISTRIBUTER  SYSTEM. 

The  advantages  offered  by  the  use  of  a  properly 
constructed  secondary  distributer  and  single  coil 
outfit  is  the  simplicity  of  wiring.  At  Figs.  31,  32, 
33  it  will  be  seen  that  but  one  single  unit  coil  is 
needed,  and  one  primary  wire  leads  from  the  coil 
to  the  single  primary  terminal  of  the  distributer. 
From  the  coil  the  secondary  lead  is  attached  to  the 
high  tension  terminal  on  the  distributer,  which  has 
direct  bearing  on  the  distributing  segment,  and  the 
terminals  which  are  spaced  around  the  periphery  are 
attached  to  the  plugs  in  the  order  of  firing. 

The  method  of  timing  is  exactly  the  same  as  that 
employed  with  the  primary  timer,  except  that  the 
revolving  high  tension  distributing  brush  is  used  as 
a  gauge  or  indication;  this  should  register  with  the 
terminal  leading  to  the  plug  in  the  cylinder  that 
fires  when  the  piston  is  at  the  proper  point,  as  shown 
at  Fig.  24.  Then,  according  to  the  firing  order, 
the  other  terminals  are  coupled  to  the  plugs.  The 
diagrams  are  so  clear  that  further  explanation  seems 
unnecessary. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  99 

LOW-TENSION  IGNITION. 

The  low-tension  system  is  used  to  some  extent  by 
automobile  designers,  though  the  high-tension  sys- 
tems are  most  popular.  We  have  learned  that  to 
obtain  a  spark  in  the  cylinder  that  there  must  be  a 
make  and  break  in  the  circuit,  and  it  is  upon  the 
method  of  producing  this  interruption  that  the  suc- 
cessful operation  of  the  low-tension  system  depends. 


100 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


The  break  must  be  positive,  and,  to  be  capable  of 
practical  application  to  automobile  engines,  the 
operating  mechanism  employed  must  be  operative 
at  the  maximum  number  of  revolutions  the  engine 
may  develop.  It  will  be  evident  much  depends  upon 
the  design  of  the  igniter  plate. 


Practical  Automobile. 


101 


The  coil  used  with  the  low-tension  system  is  a  very 
simple  form,  being  a  primary  winding  of  compara- 
tively coarse  wire,  around  a  core  of  soft  iron  wire. 
The  current  from  batteries  is  intensified  in  this  coil 
by  the  phenomena  known  as  self-induction,  and  one 
coil  is  sufficient  for  any  number  of  cylinders.  When 
contact  is  made  a  current  flows  through  the  coil,  this 


10£  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

producing  a  brilliant  spark  when  the  contacts  of  the 
sparking  plate  separate.  As  will  be  evident  from 
diagram  (Fig.  20)  the  wiring  of  such  a  system  is  very 
simple.  A  magneto  is  usually  employed  as  a  regular 
source  of  energy,  as  the  demands  are  too  severe  to 
be  properly  taken  care  of  by  chemical  generators, 
these  being  usually  carried  for  emergency  service. 
In  the  case  of  single-cylinder  slow-speed  motors,  such 
as  used  for  propulsion  of  craft,  batteries  may  be 
used  with  success.  From  the  magneto  terminal  a 
wire  runs  directly  to  a  bus  bar  or  common  conductor 
which  is  insulated  from  the  engine  and  attached  to 
the  insulated  contact  on  each  igniter  plate  by  means 
of  short  wires  or  strips  of  metal.  The  other  mag- 
neto wire  is  grounded.  The  batteries  are  coupled 
in  series  connection,  one  pole  of  the  set  being  coupled 
to  the  coil,  the  other  coil  terminal  being  led  to  the 
bus  bar  through  the  switch  lever  when  desired.  As 
is  evident,  the  coil  is  in  series  with  the  batteries,  as 
are  the  igniter  plates,  a  return  being  provided 
through  the  ground  to  the  batteries. 

A  TYPICAL  IGNITER  PLATE. 
LOW-TENSION  IGNITION. 

There  are  many  forms  of  igniters  in  common  use, 
these  being  divided  into  two  distinct  types,  those 
using  a  wipe  contact,  the  others  that  employ  a  touch 
contact.  The  latter  are  practically  the  only  form 
used  at  present,  and  most  engines  using  the  low- 
tension  system  are  equipped  with  a  make  and  break 
igniter.  A  typical  form,  as  used  on  the  Locomobile 
car,  may  be  considered  representative  of  standard 
practice,  and  cuts  presented  herewith  show  the  con- 
struction and  application  of  this  appliance  very 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  103 

clearly.  Referring  to  Fig.  21,  it  will  be  seen  that 
the  igniter  consists  of  a  triangular  drop  forged 
plate,  having  a  cone  fit  in  the  cylinder,  and  being 
secured  by  three  bolts  to  the  corner  of  the  com- 
bustion chamber  over  the  inlet  valve,  where  it  is 
directly  in  line  of  the  cool  incoming  gas.  It  carries 
an  anvil  (or  fixed  electrode)  and  a  hammer  (or 
moving  electrode).  The  anvil  is  an  insulated  steel 
rod  passing  through  the  plate  into  the  combustion 
chamber;  the  hammer  is  L-shaped,  that  part  inside 


FIG.  21 — I*ow  TENSION  IGNITER 

the  cylinder  alternately  striking  and  separating 
from  the  anvil,  and  where  the  hammer  passes  through 
the  igniter  plate  there  is  a  cone  bearing  which  pre- 
vents any  escape  of  gas. 

The  part  of  the  hammer  outside  of  the  cylinder 
is  made  in  the  form  of  a  short  lever,  ending  in  a  jaw- 
shaped  opening  connected  with  the  top  of  the  lifter 
rod,  which  is  given  vertical  motion  by  the  igniter 
cam  on  the  admission  valve  camshaft.  When  the 
lifter  rod  moves  upward  the  part  of  the  hammer 


104 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


inside  of  the  cylinder  comes  into  contact  with  the 
anvil,  and  when  the  revolving  igniter  cam  reaches  the 
proper  point  the  lifter  rod  falls,  this  action  being 
accelerated  by  a  spring  at  the  bottom  of  the  lifter 
rod,  causing  a  very  quick,  sharp  separation  of  the 


h--rr>3- 

.J— -ChJ-^ 


Fia  22-IQNITER  ACTUATION 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  105 

contact  surfaces  and  producing  a  spark  at  the  right 
time  for  igniting  the  gas.  The  igniter  lifters  are 
furnished  with  springs  at  the  top,  a  simple  manner 
of  insuring  good  contact  between  the  hammer  or 
movable  electrode,  and  the  anvil  or  fixed  electrode. 
One  of  the  difficulties  with  the  make  and  break  system 
as  ordinarily  employed  is  the  burning  or  wearing 
down  of  the  contact  surfaces.  This  can  be  largely 
reduced  by  the  use  of  iridium  or  platino-iridium 
points,  a  globule  of  this  metal  being  attached  to  the 
anvil  and  the  side  of  the  hammer,  which  makes  con- 
tact. This  metal  is  very  hard  and  has  good  resist- 
ance to  heat,  and  for  this  reason  there  can  be  no 
great  wear  or  deterioration  by  burning  through  the 
heat  of  the  spark,  as  would  be  the  case  with  a  softer 
metal.  Such  contacts  are  usually  secured  by  rivet- 
ing, as  brazing  is  not  always  satisfactory  when  ex- 
posed to  heat.  The  anvil  is  conveniently  made  in 
the  form  of  a  readily  detachable  unit  which  can  be 
withdrawn,  in  connection  with  the  insulating  bush- 
ing, and  cleaned.  Mica  and  lava  are  the  materials 
commonly  used,  porcelain  being  unsuitable,  because 
the  bushing  is  in  direct  contact  with  the  metal  and 
tightly  clamped  in  place,  a  taper  joint  being  used  in 
most  cases  to  retain  the  compression  and  explosion 
pressures.  This  method  of  installation  offers  no 
opportunity  for  expansion,  and  porcelain  would 
crack,  because  of  its  lack  of  flexibility.  A  typical 
igniter  plate  and  operating  mechanism  is  shown  at 
Fig.  32. 


106 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


HOW    TO    TIME    LOW-TENSION    IGNITION 
SYSTEMS. 

The  method  of  varying  the  time  of  ignition  is 
simply  accomplished.  The  entire  admission  camshaft 
upon  which  the  ignition  cams  are  placed  as  well,  can 


FIQ.  23-TIM1NQ  IGNITION 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  107 

be  moved  lengthwise  on  the  bearings.  When  the 
spark  advance  lever  on  the  steering  post  is  pushed 
forward  the  camshaft  is  moved  forward  and  the 
spiral  ignition  cams  assume  a  different  position  and 
cause  the  break  to  take  place  earlier.  This  method 
is  very  simple  and  of  practical  utility.  If  it  is  neces- 
sary to  retime  the  spark,  owing  to  removal  of  the 
timing  shafts,  it  can  be  easily  done,  as  illustrated 
at  Fig.  23,  which,  while  applying  specifically  to  the 
Locomobile  motor,  can  be  modified  to  meet  the  dif- 
ferent conditions  in  any  other  engine.  The  flywheel 
of  a  multiple-cylinder  engine  is  usually  marked  with 
the  proper  points  for  ignition  and  valve  opening  and 
closing.  To  time  a  single-cylinder  engine  is  a  simple 
matter,  and  even  if  the  flywheel  of  the  multiple- 
cylinder  form  is  not  marked,  timing  each  cylinder 
individually  is  possible.  If  the  points  have  been  re- 
newed one  need  not  go  over  the  entire  timing,  it 
being  merely  necessary  to  get  the  piston  at  the 
proper  firing  point,  and  adjust  the  operating  rod 
so  that  the  "points  of  the  igniter  plate  are  just  about 
to  separate.  In  the  Locomobile  motor  this  point 
is  just  five-eighths  inch  before  the  completion  of  the 
compression  stroke  with  the  spark  lever  fully  ad- 
vanced. 

To  retime  the  spark  proceed  as  follows:  Remove 
the  floor-board.  Open  pet  cocks  in  the  top  of  the 
cylinders.  Advance  spark  fully  and  apply  the 
emergency  brake  to  release  clutch.  Turn  the  start- 
ing crank  so  that  the  mark  on  the  flywheel  reading 
"Advance  spark  1  and  4"  is  just  opposite  the 
trammel  or  pointer  placed  exactly  on  the  engine 
center  line  and  the  engine  base.  Cylinder  4  should 
be  on  the  compression  stroke.  Loosen  check  nut  at 
the  bottom  of  the  tappet  rod  of  No.  4  cylinder  (the 


108  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

one  immediately  in  front  of  the  dash),  and  screw 
down  on  the  tappet  rod  slowly  and  carefully  until 
the  ball  nut  (Fig.  21)  on  the  top  of  the  rod  just 
settles  into  the  socket  on  the  end  of  the  lever  arm 
of  the  igniters;  tighten  the  locknut  and  the  igniter 
should  be  properly  timed — the  break  occurring  five- 
eighths  inch  below  top  center,  with  the  spark  fully 
advanced.  Note  that  the  hammer  lever  is  at  right 
angles  to  the  tappet  rod  when  the  hammer  and  anvil 
are  in  contact.  In  order  to  time  No.  1  cylinder  it 
will  be  necessary  to  give  the  motor  one  complete 
revolution,  bringing  the  same  mark  back  to  the 
pointer  again.  In  all  cases  the  motor  should  be  re- 
volved in  the  direction  of  rotation,  which  can  best 
be  done  by  turning  it  over  with  the  starting  handle. 
It  is  necessary  to  turn  the  motor  one  complete  revo- 
lution, as  cylinder  1  is  exhausting  while  4  is  com- 
pressing, the  full  revolution  being  required  to  bring 
the  former  on  the  compression  stroke.  Next  turn 
the  engine  until  the  reading,  "Advance  spark  for  2 
and  3,"  comes  under  the  pointer,  setting  the  ignition 
for  No.  2  cylinder.  Turn  engine  a  complete  revolu- 
tion until  the  same  mark  is  under  the  pointer  again, 
and  then  time  No.  3  cylinder.  When  a  cylinder  is 
on  the  compression  stroke,  both  valves  are  closed, 
whereas  on  the  other  upstroke  the  exhaust  valve  is 
open. 

In  other  engines,  if  the  flywheel  is  not  marked,  a 
rod  may  be  inserted  through  the  pet  cock  and  the 
travel  of  the  piston  gauged,  as  shown  at  Fig.  24, 
which  shows  the  method  of  timing  a  high-tension 
system.  The  space  shown  will  vary  with  the  stroke 
of  the  motor  to  be  timed,  the  five-eighths  inch  before 
completion  of  compression  stroke  applying  to  a 
motor  with  a  four  to  four  and  one-half  inch  (stroke. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  109 

If  the  stroke  is  less  the  space  should  be  less,  and  it 
should  be  increased  if  the  stroke  is  greater.  A  good 
indication  is  to  mark  off  the  flywheel  in  degrees — that 
is,  divide  the  circumference  by  360,  making  a  number 
of  marks  to  correspond  to  5,  10,  15,  20,  25,  30 
degrees  at  each  side  of  the  top  and  bottom  center 
marks.  With  the  spark  control  lever  in  full  ad- 
vanced position,  the  points  should  break  about  30 
degrees  ahead  of  the  point  on  the  flywheel  denoting 
full  compression  position.  If  the  spark  is  fixed,  that 
is,  no  advance  being  provided,  as  is  often  the  case 
in  marine  engines,  the  break  should  occur  when  the 
piston  reaches  top  of  compression  stroke. 

CAUSE  OF  VALVE  GEAR  NOISE. 

Many  an  engine,  especially  an  old  engine,  is  un- 
necessarily noisy  because  of  superfluous  clearance 
between  the  valve  lifters  and  the  valves,  and  a  great 
part  of  the  noise  may  be  eliminated  simply  by  the 
expenditure  of  a  little  time  and  care  in  reducing  this 
clearance  to  the  minimum.  Every  valve  cam,  no 
matter  what  its  shape  otherwise  may  be,  is  tangential, 
at  the  first  and  last  portion  of  the  valve's  movement. 
(The  sooner  the  valve  takes  hold  of  the  cam  on  the 
lift,  and  the  later  it  lets  go  on  the  descent  the  slower 
will  be  the  movement  of  the  valve  at  these  instances, 
and  the  less  will  be  the  shock  both  of  the  lifter  on 
striking  the  valve  stem  and  of  the  valve  head  on 
meeting  its  seat.)  Fig.  34  shows  this  clearly.  The 
tangent  line  C  D  starts  at  C,  and  during  the  arc 
E  F  the  rise  of  the  cam  amounts  to  only  a  minute 
distance,  C  E.  During  the  following  equal  angle, 
however,  the  lift  is  three  times  as  great. 

It  is  a  common  idea  that  the  valve  lifters  should 
in  all  cases  be  adjusted  to  open  and  close  the  valves 


110 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


at  certain  crank  angles,  which  usually  are  arbi- 
trarily assumed,  and  with  few  exceptions  will  be 
found  to  be  nothing  but  guesswork.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  it  is  seldom  indeed  that  the  cams  of  any 
engine,  particularly  any  engine  over  two  or  more 
years  old,  holds  the  valves  open  too  long  if  the  whole 
effective  angle  is  utilized. 

It  is  quite  true  that  the  cams  may  not  be  ex- 
actly alike,  and  some  hold  their  valves  open  longer 
than  others  in  the  cylinder.  The  fact  is  not  suffi- 


Cause  of  Valve  Gear  Noise 


cient  to  justify  what  amounts  to  throttling  certain 
cylinders  in  order  to  equalize  them  down  to  the  less 
efficient  ones.  This  applies  to  both  the  inlet  and 
the  exhaust  valves.  It  is,  however,  possible  that 
advancing  or  retarding  the  valves  one  tooth  on  the 
cam  gear  may  be  found  anvantageous. 

In  ordinary  engines  the  exhaust  valves  should  not 
open  earlier  than  45  degrees  crank  angle  before  the 
bottom  center,  and  they  should  not  close  before  the 
top  center,  nor  more  than  20  degrees  after  top 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  111 

center.  Experience  has  shown  that  40  degrees 
above  bottom  center  and  15  degrees  past  the  top 
center  is  about  right.  The  exact  figures,  however, 
will  depend  on  the  form  of  the  exhaust  manifold  and 
the  action  of  the  muffler,  and  no  arbitrary  rules 
can  be  laid  down. 

If  the  valves  are  on  opposite  sides  of  the  cyl- 
inders the  openings  of  the  exhaust  and  inlet  valves 
may  overlap  as  much  as  10  degrees  on  the  crank 
without  detriment,  and  a  5-degree  overlap  may  be 
allowed  even  when  the  valves  are  close  together. 

The  objection  to  an  excessive  clearance  is  not 
simply  the  vertical  hammering,  but  the  sidewise 
pressure  imposed  on  the  valve  lifters  by  the  cams, 
particularly  at  the  instant  of  opening  the  exhaust 
valves.  If  it  were  possible  to  operate  the  valves 
with  no  clearance  whatever,  and  if  there  were  no 
lost  motion,  and  if  the  whole  mechanism  were  ideally 
rigid,  the  line  of  pressure  of  the  cam  at  the  instant 
could  be  said  to  be  vertical,  and  there  would  be 
no  side  thrust  till  the  valve  was  off  its  seat  and  the 
pressure  of  the  gases  on  the  valve  was  partly  equal- 
ized. 

As  the  matter  actually  stands,  however,  there  is 
a  side  thrust  which  is  considerably  increased  by  un- 
necessary clearance,  as  comparison  of  Figs.  35  and 
36  clearly  shows.  In  Fig.  35  there  is  no  clearance, 
and  the  tangent  to  the  line  of  contact  is  horizontal. 

In  Fig.  36  there  is  a  clearance,  C  D.  The  thrust 
acts  at  right  to  the  tangent  along  the  line  E  F,  and 
if  E  H  represents  by  its  length  the  force  required 
to  overcome  the  pressure  on  the  valve  and  the  force 
of  the  spring,  there  is  a  horizontal  thrust  equal  to 
F  H. 


112  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

It  goes  without  saying  that  valve-lifters  thus  ad- 
justed will  wear  loose  in  the  guides  faster  than  they 
should.  As  the  gas  pressure  on  the  valve  head  may 
amount  to  30  or  40  pounds  per  inch  before  the 
valve  is  open,  there  is  an  evident  tendency  to  wear 
a  hollow  in  the  cam  at  the  precise  point  where  it 
starts  the  exhaust  valve  from  its  seat.  Evidently, 
moreover,  the  smaller  the  clearance,  the  greater  will 
be  the  leverage  of  the  cam  and  the  smaller  will  be 
its  wearing  tendency. 

The  precise  amount  of  minimum  clearance  is  hard 
to  state  arbitrarily.  The  thickness  of  a  business 
card,  or  about  10/1000  of  an  inch  is  ample  allow- 
ance for  the  expansion  of  valve  stems  for  the  aver- 
age length.  Frequently,  however,  this  allowance 
must  be  increased,  owing  to  irregularity  of  the  cam 
profile  or  irregular  wear  of  the  contact  ends  of  the 
valve  stems  and  lifters  or  of  the  roller. 

The  cam  must,  of  course,  clear  the  valve  through- 
out its  entire  idle  arc,  and  it  is  well  not  to  take  the 
chance  of  a  half  turn  of  the  valve,  causing  it  to 
touch  the  lifter,  owing  to  the  end  of  the  stem  not 
being  square.  If  the  roller  and  pin  of  the  lifter 
show  wear  it  is  safest  to  renew  them,  as  a  small  ir- 
regularity here  has  a  marked  effect  on  the  perform- 
ance of  the  motor. 

CARE  OF  THE  BATTERIES. 

Keep  the  terminals,  top  and  case  clean;  never 
turn  a  storage  battery  on  its  side,  as  the  acid  will 
be  spilled.  Do  not  knock  the  box  against  any  hard 
objects. 

After  you  have  made  the  connections  to  your 
sparking  circuit,  coat  the  terminals  with  grease; 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  113 

this  will  prevent  the  wires  corroding  and  will  keep 
the  nuts  from  sticking. 

Do  not  wait  until  your  engine  begins  to  miss  fire, 
but  have  the  battery  recharged  every  month. 

Have  the  battery  charged  once  a  month  whether 
weak  or  not. 

Storage  batteries  should  be  held  tightly  in  their 
box.  Rubber  sheeting  is  good  for  packing  the  bat- 
teries and  deadens  vibration  to  a  large  extent. 

PRACTICAL   HINTS  ON  THE   CARE   OF 
AUTOMOBILE  TIRES. 

If  it  were  possible  to  secure  adequate  statistics  of 
automobile  accidents,  grave,  fatal  and  otherwise,  we 
believe  it  would  be  found  that  fully  60  per  cent,  of 
them  have  occurred  on  curves  and  corners  of  roads 
and  streets.  The  risks  taken  by  the  average  driver 
at  such  points  on  even  the  open  country  road,  if 
not  exactly  appalling,  certainly  are  astonishing. 
The  wonder  is  that  accidents  are  not  more  numerous, 
according  to  Motor  World.  For  even  at  the  legal 
rate  of  20  to  25  miles  an  hour  a  car  need  be  even 
so  slightly  "out  of  hand"  to  cause  it  to  fly  off  at 
a  tangent  on  even  a  comparatively  gentle  curve. 
It  follows  that  the  greater  the  speed  the  greater  the 
danger.  There  is  small  doubt  that  the  lack  of 
proper  caution  on  curves  has  been  the  cause  of  many 
apparently  inexplicable  accidents  that  have  had 
tragic  consequences,  and  which  have  been  attributed 
to  other  reasons,  not  infrequently  to  blow-outs  or 
tires  pulling  from  their  rims.  It  is  a  splendid  trib- 
ute to  their  manufacturers  that  tires  stand  up  so  re- 
markably well  when  the  punishing  work  to  which 
they  are  put  is  considered,  and  the  terrific  strains 
to  which  they  are  subject  in  the  course  of  a  day's 


114  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

or  month's  use.  Of  such  strains  none  are  severer 
or  more  destructive  than  the  incautious  or  heedless 
manner  in  which  cars  are  whirled  around  corners 
and  curves,  and  by  heedless  is  meant  failure  to  re- 
duce speed. 

The  condition  of  the  road  surface  wherever  more 
than  the  gentlest  of  curves  prevails  usually  serves 
as  evidence,  not  only  of  the  dangers  that  lurk  there, 
but  of  the  strains  that  are  imposed  on  tires  and  the 
destructive  effects  on  the  road  itself;  of  the  practice 
of  changing  direction  without  material  reduction  of 
speed.  It  is  on  the  curves  that  the  roads  always 
are  badly  worn  and  torn  up,  the  stone  of  macadam 
paving  being  literally  rooted  out.  It  is  a  condition 
which  suggests  a  lesson  that  road  builders  have  not 
yet  taken  sufficiently  to  heart,  for  apparently  they 
have  made  no  effort  to  find  or  to  use  a  more  en- 
during form  of  construction  or  material  at  the  points 
where  it  long  has  been  plain  it  is  most  required,  and 
where  it  would  considerably  reduce  the  cost  of  main- 
tenance and  add  to  the  creature  comfort  of  all  who 
use  the  roads. 

Other  ways  of  reducing  the  tire  expense  is  to  see 
if  the  car  is  equipped  with  proper  size  tires  for  the 
weight  and  work  required.  It  should  be  kept  in 
mind  that  not  only  the  weight  of  the  car  should  be 
considered,  but  also  the  weight  of  the  passengers 
and  the  luggage  which  the  car  may  be  called  on  to 
carry.  Always  keep  the  tires  properly  inflated;  it 
will  lengthen  a  tire's  life  considerably.  It  is  just  as 
easy  to  overinflate  as  to  not  pump  in  enough  air. 

Never  put  the  brakes  on  hard  enough  to  lock  the 
wheels  unless  absolutely  necessary,  as  it  will  cause 
the  tires  to  slide  and  the  surface  of  the  road  will 
cut  them. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  115 

The  road  is  not  always  to  blame  for  skidding, 
although  that  appears  to  be  the  general  impression. 
Experienced  chauffeurs  have  frequently  found  that 
the  sudden  application  of  the  brakes  and  the  result- 
ing unequal  pressure  on  the  brake  bands  will  cause 
the  rear  end  of  the  car  to  slew  around.  The  best 
way  to  cross  newly  laid  stones  is  to  run  the  car  de- 
clutched over  the  section  at  as  low  a  speed  as  pos- 
sible— that  is,  the  driver  should  take  the  patch  de- 
clutched sufficiently  fast  to  land  just  clear  of  the 
stones  on  the  other  side.  If  the  stretch  is  a  long 
one  it  is  considered  best  to  run  on  low  speed  and  as 
slowly  as  possible,  thus  greatly  reducing  the  driving 
impact  and  saving  the  tires  to  the  utmost  degree. 

There  is  a  way  of  locating  a  small  puncture  in 
an  inner  tube  without  putting  it  in  water.  Let  the 
air  out  of  the  tube  entirely,  and  before  putting  the 
valve  in  again  blow  several  mouthfuls  of  smoke  into 
the  tube.  Replace  the  valve  and  pump  the  tube  up 
to  the  right  pressure,  and  you  will  see  the  smoke 
issue  from  any  small  leaks  that  may  be  in  the  tube. 

Don't  forget  it  is  necessary  that  a  tire  should  be 
fitted  correctly  to  the  rim.  If  this  is  not  done  blow- 
outs will  be  frequent. 

Inner  tubes  are  sometimes  caused  to  leak  due  to 
relaxation  of  the  nut  which  clamps  the  stem  to  the 
tube.  When  this  is  slackened  the  pressure  of  the 
air  contents  of  the  envelope  may  be  sufficient  to 
hold  the  outer  wall  against  the  seat  on  the  under 
side  of  the  washer,  thus  preventing  any  escape  of 
air  under  ordinary  circumstances,  but  not  strongly 
enough  to  hold  when  the  stem  is  bent  or  pulled  out 
of  line.  To  test  a  tube  which  shows  up  good  in 
all  other  respects,  the  only  safe  way  is  to  twist 
the  stem  back  and  forth  under  water  sufficiently  to 


116  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

pull  the  rubber  slightly  where  it  lies  against  the 
stem. 

As  a  general  rule  the  rear  tires  should  show  a 
pressure  of  80  pounds  and  the  front  ones  70. 

Heat,  oil  and  age  are  three  of  the  deadly  enemies 
of  the  tire. 

Tires  which  are  out  of  service  during  the  winter 
months  should  be  removed  from  the  wheels.  This 
done,  a  close  examination  of  the  cases  should  be 
made,  locating  any  cuts  or  abrasions  that  expose  the 
fabric.  These  should  be  repaired  at  once.  Neglect 
in  this  will  cause  deterioration  of  the  fabric  and 
soon  result  in  the  complete  destruction  of  the  cas- 
ing. Before  storing  the  cases  it  is  advisable  to  wash 
the  outside  of  them  with  a  little  gasoline.  This 
will  remove  any  traces  of  oil,  which,  if  left  on  the 
tire,  will  have  a  tendency  to  soften  and  destroy  the 
rubber.  This  done,  it  is  best  to  wrap  the  cases  in 
any  light  muslin  or  burlap  and  place  them  in  a  dark 
room  out  of  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  (a  dark  room 
is,  of  course,  preferable).  A  temperature  ranging 
from  30  to  40  degrees  Fahrenheit  is  best  to  prevent 
oxidation.  Tubes  should  be  laid  flat  on  a  shelf  in 
a  dark  cupboard,  care  being  taken  not  to  have  any 
weight  rest  on  them.  The  same  temperature  men- 
tioned for  the  cases  will  apply  to  tubes  as  well. 

The  rims,  if  rusted,  should  be  thoroughly  cleaned 
and  sandpapered,  then  painted  with  liquid  graphite 
(common  stove  polish  will  answer).  In  case  the 
tires  are  not  removed  the  car  should  be  jacked  up  so 
that  no  weight  rests  on  the  tires  and  part  of  the 
air  released  to  relieve  the  strain  on  the  casing,  leav- 
ing only  sufficient  pressure  to  keep  the  tire  tight 
and  in  shape.  Unless  some  pressure  is  retained  the 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Boole  117 

tube  will  have  a  tendency  to  fold  and  is  liable  to 
crack  when  again  inflated. 

Attention  to  the  above  will  result  in  the  prolonged 
life  of  your  tire  equipment. 

The  tire  in  itself  is  a  great  study,  and  by  prop- 
erly caring  for  it  you  will  be  amply  repaid  with 
added  comfort  and  pleasure  to  your  motor  trips. 

The  upkeep  of  tires  is  considered  the  greatest  run- 
ning expense  of  a  car.  ^id  you  ever  consider  that 
this  could  be  greatly  reduced  if  you  would  better 
post  yourself  on  the  care  of  your  tires? 

I  would  invite  for  the  tire  a  little  of  the  attention 
given  the  magneto,  carburetor,  etc. 

Do  not  be  too  hasty  in  condemning  a  tire  and  its 
maker  before  ascertaining  the  real  cause  of  its  giving 
out. 

Before  pronouncing  the  tire  defective  be  sure  that 
it  is  at  fault,  and  not  cut,  punctured,  or  its  condi- 
tion due  to  an  accident  received  in  service,  for  which 
you  are  responsible.  It  is  an  actual  fact  that  the 
giving  out  of  75  per  cent,  of  all  tires,  barring  acci- 
dents, is  due  to  neglect  or  misuse  by  the  owner. 

This  misuse  is  not  intentional  on  the  part  of  the 
user,  but  in  his  attention  to  the  rest  of  the  outfit  he 
has  neglected  to  think  much  about  the  tires. 

Air  costs  nothing;  tires  are  expensive. 

More  tires  give  out  from  insufficient  inflation  than 
anything  else.  Remember  that  it  is  the  air  in  the 
tube  that  carries  the  load  and  cushions  the  road. 

Avoid  sudden  application  of  the  brake. 

If  one  side  of  a  tire  shows  more  wear  than  another, 
turn  it  around. 

Running  a  tire  flat,  even  a  short  distance,  is  sure 
to  be  costly. 


118  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

Better  run  on  the  rim  very  slowly  and  carefully 
if  imperatively  necessary,  and  the  distance  is  very 
short,  than  on  a  flat  tire. 

Keep  grease  and  oil  away  from  your  tires  and 
tubes  always.  They  destroy  rubber. 

Keep  rims  in  good  order,  straight  and  true.  Rust 
is  destructive.  Paint  preserves. 

Speedy  deflation  demands  instant  attention. 

Don't  let  weight  rest  on  deflated  tires  even  over 
night. 

If  your  wheels  are  out  of  true,  their  want  of  par- 
allelism will  have  a  bad  effect  on  the  tire  covers. 
The  car  travels  at  a  twist  and  the  wheels  will  be 
scraped  instead  of  rolled  over  the  ground — added 
friction,  quicker  wear-out  to  the  tire. 

Side  skidding  and  rounding  corners  rapidly  will 
cause  rim  cutting. 

Make  sure  that  tires  are  properly  inflated  before 
beginning  trips. 

Avoid  running  in  street  car  tracks.  It  is  very 
detrimental  to  the  tires. 

Do  not  drive  in  the  ruts  or  bump  the  side  of  the 
tires  against  the  curbing  or  pavements. 

See  that  the  size  of  the  tires  is  in  keeping  with 
the  weight  of  the  machine  and  the  load  it  is  likely  to 
carry. 

Don't  start  your  machine  with  a  jump. 

If  one  of  your 'tires  sustains  a  cut_JbQ.ihe  extent  of 
exposing  the  fabric,  an  emergency  band  or  patch 
should  be  applied  at  once. 

I  would  recommend  keeping  an  odometer  record 
of  the  mileage  of  each  tire.  You  will  find  that  you 
are  getting  better  mileage  than  you  would  other- 
wise imagine. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  119 

HOW  TO  REPAIR  A  SMALL  HOLE  OR  CUT  IN 
THE  CASING. 

Never  allow  a  cut  in  the  casing  to  go  without  im- 
mediate repair — moisture  and  dirt  will  surely  enter 
in  quick  order  and  weaken  the  exposed  fabric. 

Look  your  tires  over  every  once  in  a  while,  the 
oftener  the  better,  and  when  you  find  a  cut  or  gouge 
that  extends  to  the  fabric  bear  in  mind  that  your 
tire  is  hurt  to  the  quick — that  is,  the  fabric  is  ex- 
posed to  the  disintegrating  effects  of  moisture  and 
dirt,  which  in  short  order  will  weaken  the  stoutest 
fabric,  not  only  at  the  point  of  incision,  but  perhaps 
a  foot  or  more  away,  as  the  dampness  follows  along 
the  thread  of  the  fabric  like  oil  in  a  wick.  This  ac- 
counts for  blow-outs  at  points  on  the  tire  where  the 
service  is  intact.  The  remedy  that  serves  all  im- 
mediate needs  is  not  necessarily  a  repair  garage  or 
a  vulcanizing  outfit.  Just  wash  out  and  thoroughly 
dry  the  cut,  then  apply  a  good  self-curing  cement 
which  is  prepared  expressly  for  this  purpose.  It 
can  be  purchased  at  any  garage  or  automobile  sup- 
ply store.  It  is  a  self-drying,  self-curing  cement, 
easy  to  use  and  very  effective,  as  it  securely  seats 
itself  and  seals  the  hole  or  cut  against  the  entry  of 
moisture  or  grit. 

HOW  TO  WASH  A  CAR. 

In  washing  an  automobile,  wet  the  car  all  over 
with  clean  water  first,  using  a  hose  or  sponge.  After 
the  car  is  thoroughly  wet  then  wash  with  suds  and 
immediately  rinse  with  clean  water.  After  this  rub 
it  dry  with  a  piece  of  chamois.  Be  sure  to  wet  the 
chamois  first  and  then  wring  it  out;  if  the  chamois 
is  not  thoroughly  wet  it  will  scratch  the  varnished 


120  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

surfaces.  Never  let  the  raw  soap  come  in  contact 
with  the  varnished  surfaces,  as  it  will  spot  and 
streak.  The  soap  should  be  thoroughly  dissolved 
in  water  and  made  into  suds  before  using.  A  good 
plan  is  to  first  select  a  good,  soft  oil  soap  and  put 
about  one  pound  to  each  gallon  of  water;  then  let 
it  dissolve,  and  use  about  one  pint  of  this  solution 
to  one  bucket  of  water.  In  this  way  there  will  be 
no  danger  of  the  raw  soap  coming  in  contact  with 
the  body.  There  are  very  few  who  understand  the 
proper  method  of  washing  the  varnished  surfaces  of 
a  car.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  life  of 
the  varnish  on  a  car  entirely  depends  on  the  way  it 
is  washed.  Of  course,  it  must  be  understood  to  get 
the  best  results  you  should  obtain  a  high-grade  soft 
oil  soap.  There  are  several  good  oil  soaps  on  the 
market  today  for  washing  automobiles,  but  few, 
indeed,  who  realize  that  economy  is  gained  by  using 
a  high-quality  soap. 

TO  RENEW  DRY  CELLS. 

A  very  simple  way  to  renew  dry  cells  is  to  bore 
holes  in  the  pitch  at  the  top  of  the  cell  and  moisten 
the  interior  with  a  solution  of  sal  ammoniac  or  salt 
water,  or  you  could  use  vinegar. 

The  following  is  also  a  dry  battery  renewer :  Make 
a  solution  of  calcium  chloride,  crystallized,  30  parts ; 
calcium  chloride,  granulated,  30  parts;  ammonia 
sulphate,  15  parts;  zinc  sulphate,  25  parts.  Moisten 
the  interior  with  it  through  holes  bored  in  the  pitch. 

The  writer  does  not  recommend  this  method  unless 
in  cases  of  emergency.  New  cells  would  give  better 
satisfaction. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  121 

A  FEW  THINGS  WORTH  KNOWING. 

No  one  thing  is  responsible  for  more  "automobile 
troubles"  in  a  well  designed  and  correctly  constructed 
car  than  insufficient  lubrication. 

Nothing  in  a  motor  car  is  more  essential  to  the 
safety  of  the  motorist  than  a  thoroughly  efficient 
brake  system. 

Never  run  your  engine  to  its  maximum  while  the 
car  is  standing  idle.  It  puts  an  unusual  strain  on 
the  different  parts. 

Remember  spark  plugs  that  are  in  the  cylinders 
are  more  likely  to  become  fouled  than  those  that  are 
carried  in  the  tool  box.  It  is  a  good  plan,  when 
trouble  comes,  to  take  them  out  and  clean  them  be- 
fore taking  the  coil  or  magneto  apart. 

If  you  ever  get  stuck  in  the  mud,  and  you  have 
no  chains  or  your  chains  will  not  get  you  out,  pro- 
cure a  rope,  fasten  one  end  to  a  tree  or  fence,  if 
there  is  no  tree  or  fence,  then  drive  a  heavy  stake 
in  the  road  ahead,  then  fasten  the  other  end  of  the 
rope  around  the  axle  or  hub  of  one  of  the  driving 
wheels.  When  the  engine  is  started  the  rope  will 
wind  up  on  the  wheel  or  axle  and  pull  the  car  out. 

Ignition  trouble  may  be  present,  although  the 
cylinders  may  not  miss  fire.  The  spark  plugs  may 
be  dirty,  allowing  but  a  small  spark  to  jump  across 
the  points. 

When  filling  the  gasoline  tank  it  is  desirable  to 
place  a  piece  of  chamois  in  the  funnel  for  the  pur- 
pose of  straining  out  all  floating  particles,  as  well 
as  water,  from  the  gasoline.  Fine  wire  gauze  may 
be  used  as  a  strainer,  but  it  will  not,  of  course,  ex- 
clude water  that  may  be  mixed  with  the  gasoline. 


122  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

A  gasoline  fire  may  be  extinguished  with  sand  or 
earth;  never  use  water.  Ammonia  will  smother  a 
gasoline  fire  if  confined  in  a  small  space. 

Never  hunt  a  gasoline  leak  with  an  open  light. 
The  result  of  finding  it  may  be  disastrous. 

Never  pour  gasoline  out  in  a  room  where  there 
is  an  open  light,  because  the  vapor  of  gasoline  will 
be  drawn  to  any  nearby  fire,  candle,  gaslight  or 
lamp. 

Never  leave  a  gasoline  vessel  uncovered,  because 
the  currents  of  air  draw  out  the  vapor. 

Never  fill  a  can  quite  full,  for  gasoline  expands 
much  more  than  water  when  it  becomes  warm,  and 
is  likely  to  force  open  a  seam  in  the  can. 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


123 


124 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


HORSEPOWER    FOR    INTERNAL     COMBUS 
TION   MOTOR    AUTOMOBILES. 

CALCULATED    FROM    FORMULA: 

(DIAM.  IN  INCHES) 2  X  NUMBER  OF  CYLINDERS 

H.  P.  = 

2.5 


BORE 


HORSE  POWER 


Inches 

Millimeters 

1  Cylinder 

2  Cylinders 

4  Cylinders 

6  Cylinders 

2y> 

64 

2.5 

5.0 

10.0 

15.0 

5/* 

68 

2.8 

5.5 

11.0 

16.5 

3/ 

70 

3.0 

6.0 

12.1 

18.1 

7/8 

73 

3.3 

6.6 

13.2 

19.8 

3— 

76 

3.6 

7.2 

14.4 

21.6 

y 

79 

3.9 

7.8 

15.6 

23.4 

yl 

83 

4.2 

8.4 

16.9 

25.3 

85 

4.6 

9.1 

18.2 

27.3 

3y, 

89 

4.9 

9.8 

19.6 

29.4 

% 

92 

5.3 

10.5 

21.0 

31.5 

3/ 

95 

5.6 

11.2 

22.5 

33.7 

7s 

99 

6.0 

12.0 

24.0 

36.0 

4— 

102 

6.4 

12.8 

25.6 

38.4 

105 

6.8 

13.6 

27.2 

40.8 

% 

108 

7.2 

14.4 

28.9 

43.3 

% 

111 

7.7 

15.3 

30.6 

45.9 

4  1/ 

114 

8.1 

16.2 

32.4 

48.6 

5/ 

118 

8.6 

17.1 

34.2 

51.4 

3/ 

121 

9.0 

18.0 

36.1 

54.2 

7/8 

124 

9.5 

19.0 

38.0 

57.0 

5  — 

127 

10.0 

20.0 

40.0 

60.0 

ys 

130 

10.5 

21.0 

42.0 

63.0 

133 

11.0 

22.0 

44.1 

66.1 

% 

137 

11.6 

23.1 

46.2 

69.3 

5y 

140 

12.1 

24.2 

48.4 

72.6 

y 

143 

12.7 

25.3 

50.6 

75.9 

3/4 

146 

13.2 

26.4 

52.9 

79.3 

7/8 

149 

13.8 

27.6 

55.2 

82.8 

6— 

152 

14.4 

28.8 

57.6 

86.4 

Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  125 

WEIGHT  AND  INFLATION  SCHEDULE. 

The  table  below  gives  the  required  inflation  and  the 
gross  weights  most  tires  are  guaranteed  to  carry: 


Size 

Inflation 

Rear  Weight 

Front  Weight 

28x2% 

55  Ibs. 

225  Ibs. 

275  Ibs. 

30x2i/3 

55    " 

225    " 

275    " 

28x3 

65    " 

350    " 

425    " 

30x3 

65    " 

375    " 

450   u 

32x3 

65    " 

375    " 

450    " 

34x3 

65    « 

400    " 

475    " 

28  x  3y2 

70   " 

425    " 

500    " 

30  x  3% 

70    " 

450    " 

550    " 

32x3% 

70   " 

500    " 

600    " 

34x3i/2 

70    " 

550    " 

650    " 

36x3y2 

70   " 

600    " 

700    " 

30x4 

75    " 

625    " 

750    " 

32x4 

75    " 

650    " 

800    " 

34x4 

75    " 

700    " 

875    " 

36x4 

75    " 

750    " 

900    " 

38x4 

75    « 

800    " 

950    " 

40x4 

75    " 

850    " 

1000    " 

42x4 

75    " 

900    " 

1050    " 

32  x  414 

80    " 

750    " 

950    " 

34x4% 

80    " 

900    " 

1125    " 

36x4% 

80    " 

975    " 

1225    " 

38  x  4y~ 

80    " 

1050    " 

1300    " 

40x4V, 

80    " 

1125    " 

1375    " 

42  x  41/2 

80   " 

1200    " 

1450    " 

35x5 

85    " 

1000    " 

1250    " 

37x5 

85    " 

1100    " 

1350    " 

39x5 

85    " 

1200   " 

1450    " 

41x5 

85    « 

1300    " 

1500    " 

38x5% 

90    " 

1200    " 

1450    " 

40x5i/2 

90    " 

1350    " 

1600    " 

126  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

HOW  TO  APPLY  FOR  A  LICENSE. 

The  way  to  apply  for  an  operator's  license  is  to 
write  to  the  State  Board  of  License  Commission  for 
Operators  (or  its  authorized  agent)  of  the  State 
in  which  you  wish  to  drive  an  automobile,  and  ask 
for  an  operator's  application  blank,  which  will  be 
promptly  sent  you.  On  receipt  of  same  fill  it  out 
and  mail  it  back  with  remittance  to  the  License 
Board,  who  will  inform  you  where  and  what  day  and 
date  you  should  appear  for  an  examination,  all  of 
which  will  require  about  a  week. 

COST  FOR  AN  OPERATOR'S  LICENSE. 

The  cost  of  an  operator's  license  varies  quite  a 
good  deal  in  the  different  States,  and  is  subject  to 
change.  The  price  of  the  license,  however,  which 
ranges  from  $1  to  $5,  will  be  sent  with  the  applica- 
tion blank. 

CONCLUSION. 

Of  course,  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  applicant  for 
a  chauffeur's  license  to  familiarize  himself  with  the 
entire  contents  of  this  book,  but  one  should  study 
pages  from  4  to  18,  that  he  may  be  able  to  answer 
the  questions  put  to  him.  After  studying  pages  4 
to  18  carefully,  and  to  make  himself  sure  he  has  mas- 
tered the  instructions  therein,  go  to  some  garage  and 
look  over  the  different  cars  and  see  if  you  have 
learned  your  lesson  well  enough  to  be  able  to  tell 
what  each  lever,  etc.,  is  for.  Of  course,  some  cars 
are  more  complex  than  others,  so  if  you  are  at  fault 
with  the  first  one  try  another.  After  which  you  can 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


127 


hire  an  automobile  with  a  driver  for  an  hour  of  any 
auto  school  for  a  small  sum,  and  go  to  the  suburbs 
and  try  driving  yourself,  asking  the  driver  that  is 
with  you  any  questions  you  may  wish  answered.  Do 
this  until  you  feel  confident  you  have  mastered  your 
work. 


128  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Accelerator,  the  use  of  an 13 

Acetylene  light,  precautions  with  an 55 

Air-cooling    system    41 

Ammeter,    what    is    an 21 

Ampere,  what  is   an 21 

Autometer,   description   of  an 36 

Automobile,  how  to  drive  an 68  to  74 

Automobile,  main  points  in  the  care  of  an 54 

Axle,   dead    30 

Axle,   live    30 

B 

Batteries,  care  of  the 112-113 

Battery,   dry  cell    47^18 

Battery,  how  to  renew  a  dry  cell 120 

Battery,    storage     46  to  48 

Bearings,   heating   of   wheel 46 

Bearings,    types    of 46 

Brakes,  location   and   description   of 56  to  58 

C 

Cam,   definition   of 46 

Cam,  the  use  of  a 46 

Carbon  deposits,  cause  of 18 

Carbon,  how  to  remove 20-21 

Carburetor    5-6-12-24-25-26 

Carburetor,  description  of  the 79  to  82 

Chauffeur,  what  is  a 38 

Clutch   slips    20 

Clutch  takes  hold  too  quickly 20 

Clutch,  the  use  of  a 11 

Clutches,   types   of 11 

Cooling   systems 41 

Coil,   adjusting  the   spark 77  to  79 

Coils,   multiple  unit 88-89 

Commutator,   what  is   a 21 

Compression,  cause  of  poor 19 

Compression,  how  to  tell  poor 20 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  129 


PAGE 

Connecting  rod,  function  of  the 15 

Conclusion     126-127 

Current,    alternating    

Current,   direct    23 

Cycle,   definition    of 

Cycles  of  operation 

Cylinders,  proper   temperature   of 42 

D 

Differential  gear,  the  use  of  the 30 

Differential,   lubrication   of 39-40 

Distributer,  advantages  by  the  use  of  a 97  to  100 

Distributer,    the    secondary 94  to  98 

Distributer,  the  use  of  a 22 

Drive,   shaft    53 

Drive,  chain    53-54 

Driving,  instructions  on 68  to  74 

Driving,   positions   when 

Driving,  right  and  wrong  ways  of 31-74-75 

Driving,  rules  of  the  road  when 32  to  38 

Driving  shaft,  function  of  the 15 

Driving  systems,   forms   of 123 

Dry  cells,  how  to  renew 120 

E 

Electric  vehicle 61  to  64 

Engine,   description   of  parts 5-7-9-11  to  15 

Engine,   four-cycle    7-9 

Engine,  how  to  cool  an  overheated 19 

Engine  kick,  cause  of 18 

Engine,  Knight  type 65  to  67 

Engine  stops,  why  the 76-77 

Engine,  symptoms  of  overheated 19 

Engine    troubles    16  to  20 

Engine,    two-cycle    . 60 

Equalizer,  description  of  an 57 

Exhaust,  cause  of  smoky 18 

Exploding  chamber,  description   of  the 11 

F 

Fly-wheel,  the  use  of  a 9 

Freezing,  compound  to  prevent 41 

Freezing,  precautions  to  prevent 42-43-54 

Friction,  definition  of 39 

Friction,  how  to  prevent 39 


130  Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book 

G  PAGE 

Gasket,  precautions  in  placing  a 55 

Gasoline,   precautions   in   handling 59-60 

Gears,  function  of  the  timing 43 

Gear  lever  position  for  starting 14 

H 

Highway,  definition  of  public 36 

Hill  climbing,  instructions  on 71 

Horsepower  calculated  from  formula 124 

Horsepower,  formula  used  for  estimating 16 

Horsepower,  what  is  a 15 

Hydrometer,  what  is  a 22 

I 

Igniter  plate,   a  typical 102  to  105 

Ignition   22  to  24 

Ignition,  dual  system  of 23 

Ignition,  timing  of  battery 86-87 

Ignition,   low-tension    99  to  102 

Ignition,   timing   low-tension 106  to  109 

Ignition,  timing  of  magneto 82-83-84-86 

K 

Kerosene  used  as   fuel 15 

L 

License,  cost  of  a 126 

License,  how  to  apply  for  a 126 

License,  permitting  the  use  of  a 38 

License  plates,  how  to  display 36 

License   when    suspended 39 

Lights,  how  to  display 36 

Lubrication    39^.0 

M 

Magneto,  description  of  the 12-13 

Magneto,  timing  of  the 82 

Magnetos,   high-   and   low-tension 22-23 

Motor  vehicle,  definition   of 38 

Muffler  cut-out,  the  use  of  a 12-13 

Muffler  shot,  cause  of  a 18 

Muffler,  why  used 18 

P 

Pistons,   care   in    replacing 55 

Pre-ignition,  cause  of 21 

Pre-ignition,   definition   of 

Pumps,  types  of 41 


Practical  Automobile  Hand-Book  131 

B  PAGE 

Radiator,  the   41 

Railroad,  how  to  cross  a 37-38 

Rules  of  the  road 32  to  38 

S 

Skidding,  cause  and  prevention  of 56-72 

Spark,   advancing   the 13 

Spark  lever,  the  use  of  the 7-8 

Spark  plug,  the  use  of  a 9-10 

Speedometer,  description  of  the 36 

Sprag,  the  use  of  a 14 

Steer,  learning  to 72 

Steering  gear,  information  about  the 58 

Spring,  repairs  to  broken  body 54 

T 

Things  worth  knowing,  a  few 121-122 

Throttle  lever,  proper  position  of  the 13 

Throttle  lever,  the  use  of  a 7-8 

Tire,  how  to  repair  a 119 

Tires    49  to  53 

Tires,  care  of  the 113  to  118 

Tires,  weight  and  inflation  schedule  of 125 

Transmission,  construction  and  care  of 27  to  30 

Transmission,  description  of  the 75-76 

Transmission,  how  to  lubricate  a 39-40 

Transmissions,   difference   between 26-27 

U 

Universal  joints,  location   of 53-54 

V 

Valve  gear  noise,  cause  of 109  to  112 

Valves,  grinding  of 44 

Valves,  how  many 12 

Valves,  timing  of  the 110-111 

Valves,  types  of 43  to  46 

Vehicles  having  the  right  of  way 35 

Volt,  what  is  a 31 

W 

Wash  the  car,  how  to 119-120 

Water-jacket,  the  use  of  a 13 

Wheel,   artillery    53 

Wheels,  how  to  determine  if  out  of  true 51 

Wheels,  lubrication   of  the 40 

Wiring  diagram,  low-tension  ignition 101 

Wiring,  distributer  system  of 97  to  100 

Wiring,   multiple   cylinder 92  to  94 

Wiring,  one  cylinder 88-89-90-92 


;L 


THIS  BOOK 

OVERDUE. 

— -~ 


LD  21-50W-8.-32 


U.C.  BERKELEY  LIBRARIES 


